


some kind of madness is swallowing me whole-and now i have finally seen the light

by twilight_renaissance



Category: Twilight (Movies), Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/M, I am terrible at writing my thoughts in a grammatical way, I'm so sorry, In which Bella is a vampire before meeting any of the Cullens, Other, Vampire Bella Swan, Vampires, edward isn't so broody, mike newton is there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:07:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 58,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25471360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twilight_renaissance/pseuds/twilight_renaissance
Summary: So basically Bella is a vampire before meeting the Cullens. They know who she is but she has no idea who they are.  She has been living the same life for 100 years and is looking for a change.  She will start her new life in Forks, Washington.  Find out what happens when she goes on this journey to turn her whole life around, and for a vampire that is a long time.
Relationships: Edward Cullen/Bella Swan, Jacob Black/Bella Swan, Mike Newton/Bella Swan, Other Relationships
Comments: 14
Kudos: 72





	1. part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!!! if there are any errors, especially grammar, please just ignore it. There shouldn't be too many to influence the story. I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing it. If you're here from my Instagram, Hi I love you all. If you're here because you stumbled on this alone, Hi I love you follow me on Instagram @twilight_renaissance. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1QlsbaZCZkS4V8AEycHywK?si=zU4eJcLkSnupwlc0EnIKlg <\---- playlist I listen to while writing. Madness by Muse has been a big inspiration (hence the title). Thank you for reading. If you like it share, comment, and give kudos!!!

From coast to coast. The trees expand in each area. People fluttering each end. Architecture that was so detailed it needed a careful look to see. There was no place she called home. Once, 100 years ago, she called Virginia home before all she could think about was killing. The slightest smell of blood was the best smell in the world. To you, it might be cookies baking on a Sunday afternoon. To Bella Swan, it was when someone fell on the ground and scraped their knees and hands. That was the best moment to attack when they were vulnerable. 

**_history_ **

Bella hadn’t given it much thought to how she would die in 1919 before it happened. She heard rumors of people who could run faster than anyone could see and people who could lift 500 times their weight. These people would have Bella curious for years. She wouldn’t know at the age of 14 that in 5 years she would be one. She heard lots of rumors in her time as a nurse, which she began learning when she was 14. As a nurse, there were a few things Bella needed to learn first. Her mother, Mary, had been practicing as a nurse for as long as she could remember, and at 14 that isn’t that long but people would tell stories of her mother being a nurse. Bella learned everything she needed to know from her mother. She learned where the best place to insert her teeth would be. The best place to drain a human of their blood content. The best place to quickly knock someone unconscious, if needed. 

###

 _It might be time to change the scenery_ , Bella thought to herself. _Maybe get back into nursing. It has been 100 years. I need a change._

It wasn’t a spur of the moment thought. Bella had been searching for more for a while now. She yearned for something. She wanted to feel something even though being a vampire made her unable to feel for quite some time. She wanted company. She remembers seeing couples on their vacations in Paris, Hong Kong, or even New Orleans. For the moments they were in these cities together everything felt right to them. Now some of them could’ve gone home and things changed there, but for those brief moments of satisfaction, those couples showed bliss. Something Bella only had on rare occasions. She never really wanted that for herself, for obvious circumstantial reasons, but it had her longing for something more. 

_I could always turn the love of my life into a vampire_ , she always began this monologue when she was longing. _Although this wasn’t my choice so I would never make it anyone else’s._

So, in a random out of the blue moment one day, she looked up the best doctors in the Olympic Northwest of America, because they have the most cloudy days there ( _obviously_ ). None other than Dr. Carlisle Cullen showed up. 

The website said “The best doctor of Forks, Washington. No scratch that. The best doctor in all of Washington. And he has a smile to prove it.” _Why would a website even say something like that? What does a smile have to do with how well someone practices medicine?_

Bella just stared at Dr. Cullen until his proven smile became too creepy to handle. 

_If he was the “best” doctor then being a nurse wouldn’t be too bad_ , Bella thought. _Now to only forge a degree and previous work references._

So, Bella went on searching for how to forge a degree and work references. Nothing much was coming up that was legal. She wanted this to be a clean slate. If she was going to up and leave her whole life behind, her criminal ways had to leave, too.

For a hundred years the only thing on Bella’s mind was feeding on the innocent. It never bothered her. She never thought about wanting to live life another way. It wasn’t a task for her to find someone delicious to feed on. That was even the highlight of her day most days. It would be comparable to a human going to the store, buying ingredients, and going home to cook them. _When you live for a hundred years you have to find joy in the little things,_ she exhaled heavily to show humor behind the thought. 

**_history _ **

_I remember that feeling. The first time my mom let me near the dead body. She always said “you’re too young” but then one day I wasn’t too young. Death fascinated me, even before I became dead myself. It was consuming how something as simple as a breath can be taken for granted._ “Bella, you have to be careful about how close you come to those bodies,” Bella’s mother warned consistently. “You never know what diseases they had.” Her mother was right, in almost every situation but especially this one, the Spanish influenza was making its way around. “What would I do if I lost you?” Mary asked Bella that a lot. For as long as she could remember it had been Bella and her mom. _What would I do if I lost_ her?

###

She was going to have to get this job the hard way. She was going to have to go back to high school. It could’ve been easy to forge a high school diploma, just by looking up some of the most populated high schools in the country, so that there would be people who didn’t remember her there and it wouldn’t be weird. Maybe finding a high school that flooded or had a fire so there could be a reason for a lost record. Maybe even finding a high school abroad so that was a reason to lose a file. Either way, she wouldn’t be able to keep the lie going for too long. Somehow people ask a lot of questions even when it isn’t their business to be asking it. And sometimes it’s hard to keep a lie going for a long time.

She hasn’t been to high school in a while anyway, so not only will she learn high school topics she will also learn the lingo of the teenagers of 2019. 

On her way to Forks, Washington she went. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay!! you made it through the first chapter. This was a short one and kind of boring in my opinion but it does pick up I promise just keep sticking with me.


	2. part 2

Upon arriving at Forks she felt a familiar sense, it felt like home instantly. This is odd because Bella kept track of the places she visited and Forks, Washington was not on the list. The feeling was comforting, like a warm blanket. Almost as if she lived a life here in another universe. _I’m just glad I don’t have to hide as much._

She wanted to know more about Carlisle. That was her ultimate goal anyway, being a nurse under the greatest doctor, building a foundation, starting a new life. _No one knows me here. I can be brand new. However, I need a snack._ It wasn’t that she wanted this new lifestyle to be criminal free. It was the starting new part. After 100 years of living a life one way, 100 years of a different way will be refreshing. _Time isn’t even relevant to me_ , she thought. _No humans. No humans._ She saw a man leaving a police car. Somehow the only thing she noticed was his pulse in his neck while other people might have noticed the mustache he was supporting. _No humans. No humans. This is a new life. NO HUMANS._ All she heard was his heart beating. She knew that if she didn’t leave this place she would kill this man. She fled with every ounce of strength she had into the woods.

In her time as a vampire, she’s heard of different vampire covens that choose the “vegetarian lifestyle” for hunting. She doesn’t know exactly who those covens are but she knows they exist, _it’s not like there’s a Google search for that one._

Running through the forest she came upon a herd of deer. _Jackpot!_

She devoured the male of the group. _The taste doesn’t hit the spot of hunger as much as a human does but I’m not hungry. I see why some vampires choose this lifestyle._ She almost finished the female when a noise in the distance disrupted her focus. _Who is watching me?_

She turned around quickly and relief quickened over her body just as fast as a new fear arose. A cougar was staring her down with envy from across the forest area. _I never had a cougar before. I never had deer before today either. I am probably not in my best state to fight a cougar so I’ll see myself out_. 

After Bella avoided a fight with the cougar she decided she needed something else to do. _Starting a normal life is so hard when my life before only had one purpose. I need to find a hobby. I don’t even know what a hobby is._ So, she did what most 19 year-olds, who have been 19 for 100 years, do. She took out her smartphone and Googled “Most Popular Hobbies.”

_A lot of these would work if I were a human. Cooking? No use for that. Gardening? I mean if I take up non-edible plants I guess. Exercise? I’m a 100-year-old vampire. Advertising? I know I have limited knowledge of hobbies but what kind of hobby is that?_ She scoffed out loud to her thoughts on advertising. She wasn’t wrong, advertising didn’t seem like a plausible hobby. 

_Photography is actually a good place to start._

Of course, she didn't have any equipment so she would have to take a drive to Port Angeles to even go to a Walmart for a camera. She had been eavesdropping on the locals and a lot of them talk about going to Port Angeles for stuff because Forks is so small. All it took was another Google search to understand what was going on. Although it was something that sparked her interest, she would have to make that trip another day. _I can’t believe after all this time alive I don’t have something as simple as a camera,_ she rolled her eyes at herself. Again this was a reasonable thought but Bella had been living on the run for her whole life as a vampire there was no reason for material things like a camera. The only things she ever needed were clothes and a warm vein to slurp on. 

She planned out her trip to Port Angeles for Friday, the day after next, so she could get a camera and start this new life. 

**_Background_ **

Bella never wanted to settle down. Even as a human, being everywhere was a perfect way for her to live her life. Because of this fantasy, she never owned a lot of things. She had the clothes she needed but even now she didn’t need those. A couple of decades after becoming a vampire she started questioning just how much she actually needed. After she started making money, she knew that holding on to things would be obsolete. At first, the only things she needed to keep with her were her clothes and a couple of things from her mother. Then it became her car, clothes and her mother’s things. Now it’s just her car and her mother’s things. Bella began to want more stability in her life. She doesn’t know when but she started thinking about her life and how it sort of seemed lonely. This is what ultimately led her to start fresh. 

###

Bella’s thoughts were running wild and it probably had to do with the fact that she didn’t drink any human blood today. She couldn’t complete one thought without another one starting its course in her head. The thoughts were incomprehensible with one spiking into the next. They all had a theme though, that police officer’s pulse, the scrape from the little girl down the street, and the guy who bit his lip a little too hard.

“Okay!” she shouted, to no one in particular, just her thoughts. No one was around to hear her in her house anyway. 

**_background_ **

Once Bella arrived in Forks her first goal was to find a place to live. She didn’t know how long she would be staying so she wanted to settle into an apartment. Somehow she didn’t think that Forks, Washington wouldn’t have any apartments available, so she looked for houses to rent. And, _Oh My GOSH! Forks is so small,_ there were four houses on the market and one was up for rent. That one was in Bella’s price range but had two more rooms than she needed. _Oh well, not a big deal, maybe I’ll make some friends_ , she laughed at herself again. It was off the main road and near this dinky resort so it wouldn’t be impossible to find. 

###

So, after Bella couldn’t take her thoughts anymore she hopped in her car and drove until she was in Portland. _If I’m not committing the crime in Forks then it isn’t part of my new life_. She knew this reasoning didn’t make any sense but she couldn’t just quit human blood cold turkey. 

She scoped the scene out in front of her. A mom and her child walking on the left, a man jogging and a group of people who looked older than teenagers but younger than 30. She was going for the jogger. He was doing laps around the park and if he was doing as many as she thought he was then she had about two left until he was done and would possibly leave. 

While she waited for the jogger to finish up and head to his car she listened to the group of young adults. 

“Do you think the show will be good?” the blonde-headed one asked, probably talking about a concert. 

“I think it will be, I’ve been to a few of their shows and they’ve all been good,” the curly-headed one replied. 

It was rare that Bella took the time to listen to potential victims. She wasn’t heartless and when they showed that they were people it did become harder to kill them. That’s why she decided to listen to the group and not the jogger. She knew she was going to kill him so he couldn’t become more than a jogger to her. 

She heard his car door open and she ran to sneak into it. At most, it was a quick wind for the jogger. She was hidden in the back seat between the driver’s seat and the actual back seat. As soon as he shut the door and started the engine before he had time to think about leaving the parking lot, he was drained of half of his blood content. _I don’t know how long it will be until I get this taste again so I have to savor every last drop._ Seventy-five percent of the way through his blood, he is unconscious at this point she takes a moment to take it all in. She inhales deeply and slowly throws her head back in a state of euphoria. Seconds later the jogger is lifeless and has no blood left in his system. 

Over the years Bella wanted to be known. She had some fantasy that once she left a trail of dead bodies behind her someone would always know that it was her. She didn’t want humans to be able to find out and be able to trace her though. So, for the last 85 years, she hadn’t always done this, she had a signature. It was easily identifiable to vampires but to humans, it goes unnoticed. If the victim had shoelaces they were untied, straps were unbuckled, and sandals and flip flops were taken off. It could’ve added up to some detectives but she followed her trail sometimes and it never did.

The high she was riding after that human was unexplainable. It had only been one day on the “vegetarian lifestyle” and she didn’t know if she could handle it. _This is what I was made for. It is all I’ve known for so long. It is okay to mess up sometimes._

She decided to stay in Portland for the night in case she needed more blood. 

She did, eight people’s worth. 

_In my defense, I’m quitting this soon._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here you get to see Bella kill an animal and a human. We learn a lot more about Bella in this chapter she isn't heartless, she has a house, and she is sentimental


	3. part 3

When she was back in Forks, it was time to register for classes. She was physically 19 years old so she could pass for a 17-year-old but what she couldn't lie about was why she would be registering alone. _I’m starting to think that going back to high school was a terrible idea. I realize it is a good place to establish myself but it seems like this is going to be a lot of work._ So she dialed the number and did a fantastic impression of someone who could be her mother. 

“Hello, Forks High School, this is Debby Gene speaking. How may I help you?” The woman, Debby, on the other end of the phone call was very comforting, _I see why they put her in the office of a high school._

“Hello I would like to register my daughter for school, we just moved here and I want her to attend school in the fall,” Bella said in a nasally and higher-pitched voice that put all other mother impressions to shame. 

“I just need your address so we can confirm that you are in the school district,” Debby said.

“It’s 7765 La Push Road,” Bella said in her impression.

“That’s just before the school district ends you got lucky there. We can meet you and your daughter next week for a walkthrough of her classes and final signing of some paperwork if that works for you both. Now since classes have already started she will have some work to catch up on but not too much. Does next week work for you?”

“Now Debby, we moved here for my work and that has me busy at all times of the day so I really can't get into seeing you but I do have a very responsible daughter and she can bring me all of the paperwork, I just won't be able to be there. Next week is perfect for her,” somehow this impression Bella is using got a little southern in the middle of the sentence, _hopefully, Debby didn’t notice._

“I don’t see a problem with that, Missus…..,” Debby trailed waiting for Bella’s answer. 

“Oh, it’s just Miss. Miss Swan. And my daughter is Isabella Swan, Bella for short,” Bella said. 

“Great, I’ll be seeing Bella on Monday then.”

“Perfect, I will tell her about it,” Bella said and she could not wait to hang up the phone and stop using this impression that has somehow turned into an accent. 

“Have a great day,” Debby said. 

“Thanks, you too, goodbye,” Bella said and hung up the phone. 

_Now I have to shop for school supplies. UGH! At least I can pick up some things tomorrow in Port Angeles. It is funny to me how my priorities have changed over just a couple of weeks. I used to look for a pulse now I look for pencils._

Today, Bella decided to check out the town more, since she has been living here for almost a month now. She arrived back in Forks around 10 am and immediately called the school once she got home. That took about a half-hour so she decided to play normal and go to the diner she saw on her way back. 

She drove the human seed all the way so people wouldn’t suspect anything. Once she got there she sat down by a window and ordered French Toast because the menu claims “The best French Toast outside of France!” 

Once it was delivered to Bella on a ceramic plate with blue trimming and designs on it she knew it was not going to taste like “The best French Toast outside of France!” but she had to commit to the role. 

She cut off one corner piece and added a couple of fruits that came on the side and took a deep breath, because she knew this would be difficult, and put it in her mouth. She chewed and it was disgusting. The last time she ate human food as a vampire was well over 50 years ago. Food has definitely changed since then but it still tastes like dirt. This French Toast concoction does taste like sweet dirt though, she remembers how French Toast and various fruit jams tasted and the memory served well while eating this but not well enough. The sweetness she tastes is from her memory she can almost guarantee it. 

After scarfing down the whole plate of food she notices someone with blonde hair, pale blue eyes, and wearing a coat with a big letter F staring at her. He looks about how old Bella looks. _Shouldn’t he be in school? What has it come to if I care about some random teenager not being in school? Why is he staring at me? Why is he getting out of his booth? Why is he walking over to me? Why is he telling me his name? Why is his name Mike? I should probably listen to him._ She quickly removes the disgust from her face and pays attention to this Mike person. 

“Yeah I am the captain of the football team at Forks High School, that is why I am wearing this letterman here,” Mike said. 

Bella raised her eyebrow in confusion and Mike noticed and ignored it may be out of confidence.

“Are you new around here?” he asked. 

“Yeah. Me and my mom moved here a couple of days ago. Her work keeps her busy so I am here alone,” Bella said perhaps sharing too much information. 

It was silent for an awkward and long 5 minutes before Mike finally spoke. 

“I didn’t catch your name?” It wasn't a question but he asked it. 

“I didn’t throw you my name to be able to catch it.”

“I see how you’re gonna be then the fierce little lady we have there. Are you going to Forks High School?” 

“My tour and paperwork day aren’t until Monday,” Bella said, being awfully short with him. _If I’m going to establish myself here making friends is really important even if they are incompetent teenage boys. Somehow I just know he isn’t a friend that I want though._

“We almost went to the championships last season but almost was because they didn’t have me as the captain.” _How is he still talking about football?_

“Well it looks like I should be headed out anyway,” Bella said and tried her hardest to escape this Mike dude.

“Let me walk you to your car. There are lots of creepy and dangerous men around.” He’s so close to the point it’s rude to tell him. 

“No I’m good, thank you,” Bella said making her way to the exit. 

As soon as the door opened, a man who was much taller and heftier, built like a linebacker, walked into the diner. This made Bella take a step backward almost falling into Mike who denied Bella’s denial and followed her. Which made Mike back up into the waitress cleaning the table with a knife in her hand and before she knew it Mike’s hand was gushing blood. _I need to get out of here now._ The next part seemed to happen to her in slow motion. She looked at the waitress, who looked like The Scream painting. She looked at the burly man, who looked like he was on the verge of throwing up. And finally looking at Mike who suddenly looked terrified at Bella. 

“Why are your eyes black?” Mike questioned while holding his bleeding hand with his nonbleeding hand. 

She didn’t answer and just moved so quickly out of that diner the manager couldn’t catch her to say “Take your friend to the hospital.” 

###

Rushing home to be able to chomp on something in the forest felt like one of the longest things Bella has done since becoming a vampire.

_Stop thinking about eating him. Stop thinking about slurping his veins dry. Stop thinking about how satisfying it would be to drain him of his blood content. He might have been a bit creepy but you can’t kill anyone here._

Bella is a vampire. She is strong in every sense of the word. Today she learned a new strength. It took Bella incredible resilience to back away from Mike where if she weren’t starting over she would have drunk every person in that diner and saved Mike for last. “What are you?” he would’ve asked. “I’m a vampire of course,” Bella would say with a grimace and before he could even be surprised that vampires existed he would be dead. 

_Stop imagining Mike’s death. Stop imagining Mike’s death. Stop imagining Mike’s death._

Finally, Bella is home and just as soon as her feet touch her living room carpet they touch the grass in the forest that surrounds her house. 

While running and looking for a meaty deer to feed on, something peculiar catches her eye.

_Is that a pack of wolves?!_ Upon closer examination, it looks like they are chasing her. _Are they chasing me?!_ So to avoid dying by a pack of wolves Bella ran. Even when she was a human she was pretty fast, so being a vampire heightened that. She ran and ran and ran and ran until she couldn’t run anymore. She was at a clearing in the middle of the forest with a stream in the middle of two lands of rocks. She ran ahead of the pack but she knew they were still following her. She did what any vampire in her situation would do, she jumped across the stream to the other side. She listened for the wolves, knowing they wouldn’t be able to clear the jump she wanted to watch them turn away in defeat. As she watched them she noticed one of the smaller ones, not too much smaller because these were massive wolves. The smaller one noticed her, too. For a split second their eyes looked into each other and she could feel all of the pain that the wolf was enduring in just a small amount of time. There was something off about this interaction. The wolf almost felt human. 

“Human?” Bella had to ask herself out loud. 

The pain from that interaction was so similar to the pain people experience when Bella kills them. _Either that wolf was somehow, someway, human or just in incredible, wrenching pain._

A rustle of leaves brought her out of her thoughts and she was back on the hunt. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I originally started writing this I knew I wanted Bella to live right on the treaty line of the Quileute Reservation and vampire agreement. Of course in this Alternate Universe Bella has no idea what the heck that is, this is just a place for her. By having her house there she was going to run into some issues with the wolves as you've read in the chapter. Bella is so stunned by their size, rightfully so, because they are these huge creatures she has never come in contact with. Anyway, enough rambling from me. Can't wait for the new chapter!!!!
> 
> (OH MY GOSH!!!!!! MIKE WHAT THE HECK!!!!!!!!!!! its just too much to discuss)


	4. Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the past chapters from Edward's Point of View!!!

_It was a Tuesday when things started going awry for me. I finally had enough of Carlisle and Esme haranguing me about having a girlfriend. I know they mean well and they want me to have someone to spend my moderate, dull, and eternal life with. I had to get away from them because if I didn’t I would read their thoughts and I didn’t need that right now. I jumped into the car and drove. I drove faster than humanly possible, easily enough because I am the fastest vampire I know. When I didn’t feel like driving I ran. Sometimes it’s nice to have some sort of normalcy in my abnormal life._

**_History_ **

Edward Cullen became a vampire in 1918 after he died from the Spanish Influenza. At the time, Dr. Carlisle Cullen was taking care of him after contracting the flu and subsequently turned him into a vampire to save his life. It was a few years before Carlisle met and turned Esme and they fell in love. At that time, Edward was a little rebellious and did not obey the “vegetarian” diet that Carlisle imposed and went out to kill people, but in his opinion, people who deserved it. Edward did, however, turn back to Carlisle and Esme because of the massive regret that flowed over him. Soon after Rosalie Hale became Edward’s sister, the first person Carlisle and Esme wanted Edward to date. Edward didn’t like her though so then came Emmett. Along the way Jasper and Alice, who were vampires before meeting Carlisle and Esme. Jasper became Jasper Hale and that’s how their family came to be. 

###

_I found myself in the middle of the forest and I still needed to take my mind off of everything so I was searching for a nice deer to quench my thirst. How is it that Carlisle and Esme get to dictate who I spend the rest of forever with? I’m sorry, Tanya but it isn’t going to be you._

Maybe it wouldn’t be so hard for Edward to find love if he loved himself more. Either way, his search for a deer was going well until he heard someone else in the forest with him. He stood as still as he could, which for a vampire he is practically a statue. He stood there listening for that person. He couldn’t see anything but he could hear what sounded like eating, how it sounds when he eats an animal. _Maybe Alice just followed me and found the deer before I had the chance to get to it myself._ He tried to listen for Alice’s thoughts. _That’s odd_. He couldn’t hear her thoughts. _Who is this? I need a closer look_. He climbed up in the tree to see if he could get a look for the direction in which this sound was coming from. He was a little too far away to clearly make out who the person was. 

_Is this another vampire in town? Maybe I am seeing it wrong because I was unaware of other vampires in town. There is no way._

He hopped off the tree to maneuver to another tree so he could see better. Now, he was in a tree hovering almost directly over this, from what he can see, vampire. 

_Who was this? I thought we were the only vampires in town? It isn't anyone from the Denali Coven. Why can’t I read their thoughts? Does Carlisle know about more vampires in town? How could he not tell us about them?_

Edward kept watching the scene below him, it was too enticing for him to turn away. Next thing he knows the vampire has swallowed most of the contents of the female deer of the group after the male when there is a snap of a twig. Edward’s eyes widened. _Did I move and snap something? I am about to be found out._ Right as Edward is about to flee the scene he notices a cougar down below and seconds later the vampire vanishes. With that Edward vanished, too. 

###

“Carlisle, did you know there was another vampire here?” Edward said as he rushed through the doors once he got home. 

“What are you talking about?” Emmett said and everyone rushed into the living room to discuss the information that Edward had just brought up. 

**_Background_ **

At this point, Edward was gone for a couple of days. He left that Tuesday to go into the forest and saw that vampire and tried to find out more on his own. Tuesday night, still in the forest, the vampire never returned. He went into town to see if he could hear anyone talking about someone new and no one mentioned anything. Wednesday came and passed and he didn’t hear that vampire again, just the nightly howl of the wolf pack. 

He decided that he could face his family on Thursday, so he went back to them and had this discussion.

###

“I didn’t know about her right away,” Carlisle confessed. Everyone stared at him waiting for an explanation. “A couple of weeks ago I heard of someone moving into the old, Johnson house up on La Push Road. I never thought anything of it because it was just someone moving in. Then yesterday, on the Portland news, nine people were reported murdered. I made the connection even if there wasn’t a connection to make.” 

“Yeah but Portland is far away. How can you be sure it was a vampire who moved into that house?” Rosalie interrupted Carlisle.

“Exactly what I thought, it was just a connection. Then I remembered a conversation Alice and I had about a week after I found out about the house. She told me she had a vision of someone she has never seen before making, to put it lightly, a mess of things.” Carlisle continued. 

“So you saw a vampire running rampant and didn’t think to tell anyone besides Carlisle?” Edward questioned Alice. 

“She wanted to tell you all. I told her not to,” Carlisle interjected. 

“You were going to let a vampire terrorize Forks? Without letting any of us know? So we could stop it?” Edward was baffled, this wasn’t normal for Carlisle. 

“The vision changed,” Alice said. “That’s why he decided to not tell you about it. She isn’t terrorizing anyone anymore.” 

“There’s something else,” Carlisle started before Alice could spill more about who this vampire is. Everyone was waiting before Carlisle could finish. 

“You cannot be serious,” Edward said, knowing what Carlisle was going to say before he said it. “You were going to let one of the most dangerous vampires run around this town without any care?” Edward said and left the room. Everyone else was left confused. He went to his room to jot down in a journal what happened the last couple of days but he could still hear what was going on downstairs. 

“The vampire is Isabella Swan,” Carlisle said. “I heard about the nine bodies that were found in Portland and that was unusually high for Portland so I looked into the murders. It was her signature.”

“I gotta go with Edward on this one, that was messed up not telling us about that. She is very dangerous, right up there with the Volturi,” Emmett said and walked off, too. Rosalie was quick to follow him. 

“You guys the vision changed though. That means she changed. She isn’t hurting people anymore,” Alice said. 

“She was just killing people in Portland, how much could she have changed?” Rosalie said right as she was leaving the room. 

After that, Carlisle got a call to go into the hospital because someone cut their hand open at the diner and he was refusing treatment unless it was Carlisle himself. 

Whenever Carlisle came home from the hospital, Edward decided he wanted to speak with him. 

“Carlisle, let’s go,” Edward said. It was all he needed to say for Carlisle to follow him, too. 

Carlisle and Edward walk into the forest surrounding their house, far enough from prying ears. Edward took in Carlisle’s thoughts. He was just confused about why Edward brought him here and what he wanted. 

“I need to tell you something about Isabella, that vampire,” Edward said, answering Carlisle’s thoughts. 

“Go on with it.”

“I saw her. That’s how I knew there was a vampire in town. She wasn’t harming humans but this was before the Portland incident. Do you think she is changing?”

“I understand that you saw her, that’s why you brought it up. I also understand your worries. I spoke with Jasper after our meeting earlier before I left and he told me how worried you were. There is no need to be worried, Edward. I believe that Isabella is on the path to change. She has been a rampant vampire for 100 years and if she decided to prey on something other than a human that is an incredible shift. This isn’t a change that was made lightly for her.” Carlisle said, calming Edward’s worries immensely. 

Sometimes Edward hated that he could read thoughts because it felt so impersonal and invasive. This was not one of those times. When he read Carlisle’s thoughts this time he knew that he was being as honest as he could be. 

Carlisle took off back into the house and let Edward take in this new information. Edward was alone with thoughts all of the time so he hated being alone with his own, so he ran. 

Now that Edward knew where she lived he could find out more information about her. He ran to her house. _No lights on, she must not be home. I’ll wait to find out more._ So, Edward waited until a small but fast figure emerged from the surrounding forest. 

Edward was good at not being found. His hiding place was impeccable, he could see Isabella once she entered the house and got to her room. He saw her using her phone for a while. _She’s probably searching something up_. After that, she picks up a book that looks like it has been through just about everything Isabella has been through. The book is _Wuthering Heights_ by Emily Brontë. _It could very well be an original copy. Carlisle said she was a vampire for 100 years. It’s almost odd being able to see her doing something normal when all I know about her is that she’s an uncontrolled vampire._

Edward is close enough to read her mind for sure now. He tries again but fails, again. _Why can’t I read her mind?_

Watching her read, Edward notices something, _she is stunningly beautiful._ If he wasn’t so worried about her hidden motives, she could be that missing piece that Esme and Carlisle are looking for. Her dark brown hair flows past her shoulders in loose curls. Her pale skin looks soft, like the work of [Gian Lorenzo Bernini](https://www.google.com/search?q=the+rape+of+proserpina+gian+lorenzo+bernini+&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwjZyZ-KkerqAhUGNFkKHS73DYMQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=the+rape+of+proserpina+gian+lorenzo+bernini+&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzoCCAA6CAgAEAcQBRAeOggIABAIEAcQHjoGCAAQBxAeOgYIABAIEB5QorkFWNqUB2DpngdoAHAAeACAAUuIAe4UkgECNDGYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZ8ABAQ&sclient=img&ei=og0dX9nwCobo5AKu7reYCA&bih=703&biw=1440#imgrc=vBIbPQ1sHTy2fM) or any sculptor who can make a stone look soft. Her eyes are what Edward stares at for the longest time. They aren’t the black of thirst that most aggressive and bloodthirsty vampires like her have a lot. They aren’t bright red from drinking humans. This surprises Edward. _Her eyes should be red. Her eyes should embody the blood that she has been drinking from all of the countless victims._ No, her eyes are the amber color of Edward’s. She has been keeping with the animal diet. _Maybe Carlisle has a point. Although, she was JUST killing people in Portland. WHAT IS HER MOTIVE HERE?_ _Maybe she was coming back from a hunt where she just killed an animal? I’m still questioning her motive here. Who comes to a town out of the blue?_

When Edward had enough of watching the magnificent Isabella Swan, he returned home. None other than Alice was waiting there for him. 

“I know you went to see her. What were you thinking? You were the one who was seething with anger that she was going to ruin Forks. What if she saw you? Don’t you think that she wouldn’t have hesitated to kill you once she found out you were a vampire?” Alice was angry with Edward which didn’t make sense considering she wanted to keep Isabella a secret in the first place. 

“Alice, it is okay, I’m fine. She didn’t see me. I’m good at hiding,” Edward said but suddenly questioned if Isabella did see her. 

Edward and Alice sat in silence before Alice got up to go to her room. Alice was graceful in every movement she had and when they were home she often didn’t use her super-speed like everyone else. 

“She had amber eyes, you know,” Edward said to Alice who just barely left the room at that point. 

“Yeah, Edward. I know.” 

###

The next day, Edward still didn’t feel up for school so he skipped, again. He’s been to high school more than he cares to count but each time he dreads going he always hears Carlisle’s voice “ _The younger we start in a place, the longer we can stay_ .” _Sometimes it doesn’t make sense because we have left Forks and came back so many times people should recognize us. Forks is a town where no one really leaves. Something always brings the people back, just like us._

Edward still wanted to know why Isabella was here, in Forks of all places. _If she were choosing small towns to destroy from the inside out couldn’t she have chosen something more southern?_

“Edward, what’s racking your brain?” Esme said upon entering Edward’s room. Somehow, without any mind-reading powers, Esme always knew when something was wrong. It must be a mother thing. 

“I’m angry that Carlisle kept this secret from us and I want to know why Isabella is in town. Some of this doesn’t add up to me. Why would this out of control vampire choose Forks, of all places, to change her life? If that is even what she is doing. How do we know she isn’t just faking everyone out?”

“Edward, sweetie, you need to calm down. Being angry about something you can’t control doesn’t get you anywhere. Once Alice’s vision changed, Carlisle didn’t think it was important to share anymore because she isn’t harming anyone. You of all people know how fast someone changes their mind. Also, everyone deserves a chance to turn their life around if the life they were living doesn’t suit them anymore. You know that. What if after your rebellious period Carlisle and I decided to not let you back in the family?” 

“Esme, you know that’s different because I was killing bad people.”

“Edward, honey, two wrongs do not make a right. Even if one of those wrongs is wearing a shirt that says ‘I’m Good!’ Edward, you were still killing people,” Esme may have spoken to Edward like he was a 12-year-old but it still made him feel better. 

“What if she does something horrible that could’ve been avoided if we confronted her from the start?” 

“You can’t be upset about the things you can’t control,” Esme repeated. Even though it felt like it was a controllable situation, Esme was right. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So when I was writing this I realized that everything was happening too much at a time. So, I went back and clarified the days of the weeks where everything is happening. Bella eats her first animal on a Tuesday then goes to Portland Tuesday night (all of that is the same). However, it was never mentioned when she returns to Forks from that trip to Portland but it is Thursday. This conflicted with her plans to go to Port Angeles for a camera so I edited it to be Friday that she does that. It isn't too relevant what Bella was doing in Portland that Wednesday, so I didn't go back and write anymore. Just know at the end of that trip her body count for Portland reached 9.  
> Anyhoo, I hope you enjoyed Edward!!!! (I haven't read the books for ages so I don't really remember how all of the Cullens are written but I hope I did them justice!!!) I knew when I started writing this that I was going to have an Edward point of view. I just knew everything happening would be so cool from the other side of the story. I hope you like this chapter!!


	5. part 5

Bella’s POV

_ I never minded the rain. I even remember always wanting to play or dance in it when I was a child. For the amount of time I’ve been in Forks, one day was rain-free. Although I can’t dance or play in it now it does bring a sense of comfort with it knowing I once would’ve played in it. It’s nice to get this refreshing restart with all of the rain I wish it would let up. As a vampire, being in the sun in public is a good way for people to figure you out. I like to take sunny days, travel into the forests, and bask in the sun. I can’t quite feel anything but I remember what it felt like and the relaxation it brought.  _

Bella rose from the chair she was sitting in gazing at the rain and looked at the clock on the oven that was in the kitchen, not by her choice. It was 7 am but she couldn’t guess that by looking outside. It was still early to start the trip to Port Angeles so she decided to walk into the woods around her house. 

She wasn’t on the hunt, her hunger was satisfied last night by an unsuspecting deer. For the first time, in what feels like her whole time as a vampire, she didn’t run. It felt off like driving in a town after driving on the highway. She never took the time to just be.

There were points where the time went super-fast, she wouldn’t believe hours could pass so fast. Doing one thing after another seemed to pass time faster as it does, but Bella never lived a life where she needed to keep busy to pass time. Some days, unbelievably, time was the thing that got away from her. On days, like today, she was thankful that time seemed to stand still in the forest where she can realize the life around her. 

She walked further into the woods, not straying far from the path so she wouldn’t get lost. Once she reached a tree that looked good enough to climb, by the low branches provided, she climbed. Not the most normal thing for her to do but she wasn’t the best at deciding what was normal these days. The leaves on the trees provided shelter from the pouring rain. 

_ I never noticed simple things like trees shielding rain from the people below. I never took the time to, quite simply put it, care before. It’s something so simple—trees, leaves, and rain—but taking note of it could have me here forever. Even this simple act in nature I never cared about as a human, from what I can recall.  _

Bella knew she had to stop, slow down, and notice everything happening. It would be one of the many adjustments she needed to make while pretending to be human. 

She could hear the rain let up from beyond the trees so she decided she took enough time, for now. She walked back to her house, grabbed everything she needed for her trip, and hopped into her car.

9:07 am, the clock on her dashboard read.  _ I spent more time in the woods than I realized.  _

Bella always took it upon herself to keep up with the technology as it advanced. She figured it wouldn’t hurt to know how everything worked. She didn’t, however, like to flaunt having these technological items. She had a reliable smartphone and a newer model car. She never needed much else. Her car gets her where she needs to go and her phone helps navigate it once she’s there. So, she plugged her phone into the car, typed Port Angeles into the maps app on her phone, and was on her way. 

Driving was one of the harder things to control in her new lifestyle. She found it easier to hit the gas pedal and not worry about the speed because no one could catch her anyway. When she hit the highway and the speed limit was 85 mph she was relieved that she could go fast for at least an hour. Although, 85 mph wasn’t nearly as fast as she liked it was much better than the 25 mph of Forks. Cruise Control was her best friend any time she was in the car. 

The journey to Port Angeles was completed faster than Bella realized. She couldn’t figure out how to get to Walmart after only entering the city. She drove up and down each street looking for hints of the blue and white structure that would make Walmart. After searching up and down a couple of streets, she decided to pull over to type it into the maps app. 

While parked she noticed a thrift shop she made a mental note to check out when she was finished at Walmart. 

While at Walmart, she got the camera she knew she wanted along with a backpack, a couple of folders, a packet of pencils, and one 5-subject notebook. She left and headed back to the thrift store. 

_ I rarely shop for clothes because I always have what I need but I could use a new outfit.  _

The thrift shop had a small selection of clothes but was filled with books which also caught Bella’s eye. She looked at the selection of books before deciding none of them were worth her while. After looking at the clothes she picked out a few tops and bottoms that she liked. When she was about to head to the cashier to pay, a beautiful, red dress sparked her interest. The dress is mid-length, backless with a bow at the base of the back, and thick straps. 

_ I have no reason to purchase such an exquisite dress but I might regret it if I don’t.  _ She looked at the tag and it was her size.  _ I think this will be coming with me. _

Bella was on her way back to Forks.  _ I can’t believe I spent the whole day in the company of humans and my mission wasn’t to kill one of them. _ This was a big accomplishment for Bella. She knocked a full day without eating a human out of the park and she was almost completed with her second one.  _ This won’t be easy but it will be worth it. _

When she was back in Forks she decided to take her new camera out for some practice. She went back to the tree she was in earlier and climbed to the same spot to capture those views. 

_ Isn’t there a beach around here somewhere? I’m going there, too. _

She looked at the map on her phone and saw that the beach was just up the road from her house so she decided she could run there. Even though running at abnormal, inhuman speeds shouldn't be part of her new life, she wanted one last time before she left her favorite vampire behavior behind. 

Once she got to the beach, she saw a familiar baby face with blonde hair and blue eyes.

“Hey!” was all he shouted at her, both of them realizing he didn’t know her name.

“Mike,” she started while walking toward him. “How’s your hand?” It was Friday so he could have been in school but it was also 4 pm so he wouldn't be there anyway. 

“It’s much better than yesterday. I saw Dr. Cullen in the hospital so he fixed me up.” They were standing next to each other now

“Mike, don’t you ever go to school?”  _ I figured I would just ask him to clear things up _ “I mean how are you the captain of the football team if you aren’t in school?” 

“What a question from someone who won’t even tell me their name. My father was super sick yesterday so I had to cover for him at his shop. He could’ve just closed but there was a big shipment coming in that I had to handle. I was going to go back to school after the diner but you know how that turned out,” he said raising his hand. 

“And today? Did this Dr. Cullen say to skip school today?” She knew school was already out but she was curious about his school attendance for whatever reason. 

“Nah I was in school today. We just decided to come down here after school was done because it’s not raining.”

“We?” she asked because no one seemed to be around.

“Yeah, my friends from school. They’re all around here somewhere.”

Almost as if on cue, a group of people emerged from the forest. 

“Are these your friends?” Bella pointed out the group of people unseasonably dressed. 

“No I’m not sure who they are,” Mike said and looked almost frightened by these people. 

As the group drew closer, the smell that followed them repulsed Bella to no end.  _ Oh god, this is the worst smelling thing ever. _ She tried to keep herself composed as the group walked up to her and Mike. 

The smallest boy in the group felt very familiar to Bella as he stood there and waited for Bella and Mike to speak. 

“Hello, guys my friends and I were just hanging around here for a couple of hours if that’s all right,” Mike finally spoke. 

“That’s quite all right with us,” the tallest one said, clearly the leader of this group. 

Bella couldn’t shake the feeling about the smallest boy being familiar. She was staring at him indiscreetly. After staring at the boy for an uncomfortable amount of time, it clicked.  _ This was that wolf from last night in the woods. _ Once she realized she knew who he was, she knew he knew what she was. 

“Mike it was nice to see you again, but I must be heading out now,” Bella said hurriedly.

“Wait, won’t you please tell me your name now?” Mike begged, his eyes pleading.

“You’ll find out eventually,” she said and turned away. 

She walked back to where she entered the beach. Of course, the smallest boy followed her, she heard him trailing. Once she was completely gone from Mike’s gaze she turned to confront the boy. 

“Why are you following me?”

“I came to warn you to not come back to this beach and stay on your side of the treaty line,” he said with a snarl, eyebrows furrowing.

“The treaty line?” It was beyond Bella what he meant. 

“Aren’t you one of the Cullens?”

“The Cullens? There’s more than the doctor? They’re vampires, too?” Bella didn’t know who this boy was but he was giving her information that she never knew she needed. The last fact took a second to realize and surprised her the most. He stared at her for a good minute seeing that she was really confused. 

“You really don’t know what I’m talking about?” 

She didn’t answer, just shook her head and waited for him to explain. 

“Okay well,” he contemplated where to start, “Dr. Cullen has a wife and five adopted kids. They are all vampires. They all feed on animals as opposed to humans and that is harmful to our tribe. Our tribe derives from wolves and clearly, as you know we sometimes shapeshift into wolves too. The Cullens and ancestors from the tribe decided that they will not hunt humans or animals on our land. That is what the treaty line is. A line where the Cullens cannot cross into our land and we cannot cross into theirs,” he finished. 

“Thanks for the information, I’ll be sure to never come here again. Just one question though? Why didn’t you tell your group about me?” 

“Obviously they know about you, we were all chasing you last night,” he said jokingly.

“No, I mean back then at the beach. You could’ve told them I was the vampire you were chasing last night,”

“It didn’t seem like you were harmful.”

“Can’t you smell me though? I mean I smelled your group before you were even next to me.”

“I think that you were gone before they could realize it was you bringing the smell.”

It was quiet for a moment, no one leaving or bringing up the next thing to discuss. 

“Just so I’m sure where is that treaty line anyway?” Bella asked. 

“I’ll show you,” he said and started walking. 

Bella kept a distance from him, for both of their sakes. As they walked, he was telling stories about the history of their tribe, “trade secrets” he called them. 

“If they’re secrets why are you telling them to your ‘sworn enemy?’” It was a valid question and he stopped in his tracks to think about it. 

“You feel very safe to me,” he admitted.

“I could kill you more than 80 different ways,” she said back almost immediately. 

“You won’t though. I can just feel it,” he didn’t explain what he meant but Bella understood him.

“Who are you?” Bella questioned.

“I’m Jacob Black, why?”

Bella thought about all of the people she knew, none of them with the name Black. It was strange how connected to him she felt.  _ Did it have to do with the pain she saw in his eyes last night? Maybe we just understand each other’s pain _ .

“It’s strange how connected I feel to you. I was wondering, maybe I knew someone else from your family. The name doesn’t sound familiar. I’m Bella Swan by the way.”

He didn’t say anything. They just kept walking for what seemed like a long time. 

“Here we are,” he said pointing at the building through the trees. It was that dinky resort that was right near her house. 

“My house is right down that road, does that mean I have to move?” She asked, concerned. 

“No you don’t have to move, just don’t travel east of this line. There you have it, Bella.”

Jacob started walking away, “You know if you’re in so much pain being in that group, why don’t you just leave?” Bella asked and Jacob didn’t say anything for a minute, so Bella assumed that he didn’t hear her. 

“If you’re in so much pain, why don’t you just change your whole life?” 

“That’s what I’m doing, Jacob. That’s why I’m here, for change.” Bella confessed. 

Bella had no idea who this was but talking to him was so easy, it felt like they knew each other for five lifetimes. 

“You know, you’re the reason I have to be this way,” Jacob said. At first, Bella didn’t understand what he meant by “this way” but then she recalled everything he said to her today and she knew he meant wolf. 

“I don’t understand.”

“We evolve as we need to. When new predators, i.e. vampires, come into town it speeds up our evolution so we can fight. This wouldn’t have happened for a couple more years if you weren’t here,” he said angrily. 

“Don’t take your evolution out on me. For all, I know that could be why I feel connected to you. Has any other wolf been connected to a vampire before?”

“We usually run others out of town and since the Cullens don’t really stay in the town they aren’t a huge problem for us. To answer your question, I don’t know.” Jacob said. It was hard for Bella to hide her surprise.

“Well, you don’t want to get caught hanging out with the enemy, Romeo,” Bella said. Jacob understood her Shakespeare reference enough to expel air through his nose in a sort of laugh.

“No, I guess I don’t,” Jacob said and left with that. 

Now that Bella knew the rules she could obey them. No running east of her house, no more beautiful beach, and no feeding on the wolves. She knew about the rules she set for herself but she never thought other people would be setting rules for her. 

###

The weekend passed by faster than was normal for Bella. She was anxious to start school, which was a new feeling she had since becoming a vampire. She didn’t know she could be anxious but that was what she felt. The anxiousness increased her hunger so she hunted both Saturday and Sunday night. 

Saturday night she went high into the mountains hoping her strong hunger could help her fight off any dangerous animals that might be lurking. As all her senses were heightened for the hunt she became stronger and was able to defeat the cougar from before. At least, she believed it was the same cougar. 

The cougar wasn’t the only thing she ate on Saturday night, though. After she savored the cougar she was satisfied but still wanted more. 

She left the mountains and perused the valley below it hoping to find a herd of deer asleep. She had no luck but did enjoy chasing bunnies around to eat. 

It was detrimental that she didn’t find animals cute anymore. She once fawned over baby deer and bunnies when she saw them in the wild. Since they became snacks she had to hate them or she would always feel bad for them. It was either survive or let the cute animals live. She chose the former. 

Once she got home from her journey she went to that clearing where she first saw Jacob as a wolf.  _ It’s late but I might be in time to see him again _ .  _ I feel bad that I moved into town and made him hate his existence, he is only a child.  _

After waiting and listening for about an hour she heard the collective padding of the ground signifying the pack running together. Perched on top of the rocks she listened until they drew closer. She waited behind a thick tree until Jacob was the only one lingering around. 

They made eye contact for seven minutes, Bella counted. She wasn’t going to be the first one to turn away. It seemed he was trying to share something with her but she wasn’t aware of it. 

_ I wish I could figure him out. _

Sunday went similarly. She hiked to the mountains but not in search of a dangerous wild cat this time. This time she would go for the coyote. She successfully captured two coyotes and ate them, leaving their bodies for some other animals to take care of. 

She went back to that clearing and waited for the wolves. Like clockwork, they were there at the same time. This time the eye contact lasted nine minutes, still unsure of what he is trying to share with her. 

_ Maybe we will see each other when he can talk to me so he can tell me what he wants _ . 

Her last thought before she started getting ready for school on Monday was that Dr. Carlisle Cullen has kids who are vampires and will probably be at school tomorrow. 

_ It’s going to be much harder for people to not know I'm a vampire now.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this one is a bit longer than the others. I've been busy the last week reading Twilight kind of as research for this and in preparation for Midnight Sun. So we have Jacob in the story!!! I knew I wanted to include him in this, obviously, but I didn't really know how I wanted to do it. I knew it was going to be difficult as Bella is a vampire in this universe so they can't really be friends, or can they?? I also added the connection thing that wasn't a part of twilight at all but I'm rolling with it. It was my way of making sure Jacob and vampire Bella could be friends without a robot baby. I like how Jacob can't keep a secret to save his soul. Everyone knows someone like that so here it is in this story.   
> Next Chapter Bella will finally meet Edward. He knows a lot about her but she knows nothing about him except that he's a vampire, thanks to Jacob.


	6. part 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bella's first day at school!!!

_ Ugh, high school _ , Bella thought as she pulled into the parking lot near a building that had “Front Office” painted on it. 

**_Background_ **

The idea of high school today didn’t exist in the same way back in 1915 when Bella attended for the first time. There was a single classroom with one teacher and about 9 or 10 other students. Even that, most of the time Bella wasn’t at school. When Bella was 14, around the age of students, begin high school now, she completely gave up school and helped her mother with nursing. She would’ve been able to start school around age five but wasn’t even enrolled until she was 11. Her mother taught her everything she needed to know anyway. When she became a vampire school never really interested her. 

###

She walked into the office doors and half regretted making this decision. None other than Mike was there to greet her. 

“Hey, you,” he still didn’t know her name and it was so obvious now. 

“Mike, how was your night?” she asked. 

“It was great. I had an idea this morning that was too good to pass up. Since you told me that you were learning the school today, I figured, who better than me to show it to you?” he said, too enthusiastic for the morning. “I told Debby here that we were friends but since I didn’t know your name she didn’t believe me.”

“That’s very reasonable,” she said, giving Debby a thankful look. “How am I going to learn it if you don’t give me a chance?”

“I had a feeling you were going to say something like that because I know you so well,” he looked to Debby. “So I figured I would show you to your classes all day then you stick around after school and we can walk through it to see if you were paying attention,” he finished.

It wasn’t a terrible idea but she didn’t want to spend the whole day with Mike. He was one of those people who it was okay to see at school but after that, you wanted to pretend he didn’t exist. 

“Mike, I’ll be fine on my own,” she said and saw his expression change dramatically. “How about if I need help, I’ll ask you?” she quickly suggested. 

“I’ll accept on one condition,” he said and Bella knew where this was going. “You gotta tell me your name,” a big smile crept onto his face. 

“It’s Bella Swan,” she said and Mike was elated. He didn’t stick around long after that, ready to tell everyone he knows the new girl. 

“Hi Debby, is it okay that I call you that?” Bella said to the front desk lady.

“Yeah, sweetie it’s fine. Here’s your schedule,” she said, handing Bella a schedule and two other papers. “There you have a map and the teacher's signature paper. You have to get each teacher to sign it so they know you made it to their class on time. Come back at the end of the day, hand that to me, and I’ll give you the other papers your mother needs to fill out,” she said, never breaking her smile.

“Okay Debby, thank you,” Bella said and walked back out to her car. 

She had to move it from the front office parking lot. She hopped in and maneuvered into the student parking lot. Studying her schedule, it seemed she had just seven minutes until homeroom started. She picked up everything she needed and headed into the building. 

Of course, by no other luck she has, Mike was in her homeroom. 

“Bella! Fancy seeing you here” he shouted her name, excited he finally knew it. 

“Of course you’re here, Mike,” she said sarcastically.

“Bella, come meet everyone,” he said, stretching out his hand for Bella to take it. “This is Angela,” he said pointing to a girl with black hair that was so black it had blue tones to it in the light. “This is Tyler,” he said going around the circle that was there. “This is Eric. This is Jessica. And this is Lauren.”

“Hi everyone I’m Bella,” she waved at everyone, passing on the handshakes.

Everyone wanted to know Bella’s story, but she was reluctant to tell it. She thought for a while this past weekend about what she would tell when the inevitable questions came up. She had to make it something she could easily remember. 

“I’m sure that Mike has told you everything. My mom’s job has her going to new locations a lot so we move quite frequently. The last place we lived for more than a couple of months was Jacksonville, Florida. That was when I was in 8th grade. Her boss said that this location is more permanent so I’ll probably be here until graduation. Fingers crossed,” she said and crossed her fingers. 

“Mike wasn’t that detailed,” Jessica said. 

“I didn’t tell him that much, he just learned my name this morning,” Bella said, chuckling under her breath.

“So, like, how did you do school if you were moving around a lot,” Jessica asked and everyone seemed interested, too. 

“I did online schooling since we were moving around a lot,” Bella said.  _ It was also a perfect explanation for why I if it ever happened, knew more than the students currently attending. _

The answer to that seemed to satisfy Jessica and it didn’t look like she had anymore at the time. 

“What class do you have first?” Mike was anxious to know, leaning over her shoulder to peek at Bella’s schedule.  _ If I didn’t know any better, I would think he has a crush on me. Being in such proximity to him shouldn’t work for me but I don’t hate it.  _

“Looks like I have trigonometry first,” she said, turning to Mike. She looked at everyone, waiting to see if anyone else had it with her.

“I have that, too,” Angela said excitedly. 

“Looks like Angela will be your hallway buddy on the way to Trig. But only in case you need it because that’s what you want,” Mike said and winked at Bella.  _ I guess he changed his mind on how he wants to help me out then. I was under the impression that it was just going to be him for the day _ . 

They went through her whole schedule to see who would end up being her “hallway buddy” for the whole day. From trig to government it would be Angela again; from government class to English it would be Mike; from English to gym class it would be Mike, even though practically the whole group had that English class together; from gym class to lunch it would be Mike; from lunch to biology it would be Mike, and finally from Biology to Spanish it would be Jessica.  _ Mike really wasn’t about to take it easy apparently. Thank god his trig and Spanish classes were switched from mine. Imagine the whole day with him trailing me. _

After homeroom, Bella made it to the trig class without needing Angela’s help. It wasn’t too hard to find the classroom that was just down the hall from the homeroom. She and Angela were two of the first people in the class. Bella got her paper signed by Mr. Varner and she went to sit next to Angela in the back. 

The last people to walk into the room was a tall bronze headed boy and a tiny, almost fragile, girl with a long pixie haircut. When the boy noticed Bella he stared at her for what felt like the whole hour of class. His seat was diagonal from Bella’s, convenient for him, all he had to do was rest his head on his hand and he could stare at Bella with his peripheral vision.

“I know,” the boy said to the girl. Bella must’ve missed what he knew, she almost missed what he said in the first place. 

_ These must be the Cullens. If they can talk to each other at such low whispers where no one else can hear it has to be. I wonder if they know about me.  _

Bella kept her vampire hearing abilities tuned into them for the rest of the class. It seemed as though the boy was talking to himself, or the girl was talking incredibly low that Bella couldn’t hear because he was the only one she heard talk. 

“Angela,” Bella whispered when the class was almost over. Angela just looked up at her. “Who are those two people right there,” Bella asked, gesturing with her head at the boy and the girl on his left. Before Angela could answer, the bell rang. 

“Those are Edward and Alice Cullen,” Angela answered, standing to leave the room. “Their father is Doctor Carlisle Cullen. Dr. Cullen and his wife adopted them and three other kids. There's those two and Emmett as well as Jasper and Rosalie Hale who were siblings before adoption. I don’t know much about them, they are all kind of outsiders,” Angela said and Bella could tell she didn’t want to say anything bad about them. 

Edward and Alice lingered in the room until they were the last to leave, waiting to be able to watch Bella. Angela sped up a little so that Bella could find her way to the government classroom, one floor down. 

Behind Bella she could hear Edward, talking to himself again, “Alice this isn’t a joking matter,” he whispered it angrily. 

Bella slowed her pace alerting Alice and Edward that she was listening to them. 

“Yeah Alice, I’m aware,” Edward whispered. These half conversations meant nothing to Bella.  _ Why can’t I hear what Alice is saying? Is she a mute? Can Edward only understand her? Maybe she is just better at talking quietly than Edward. Maybe he’s reading her mind. No, that can’t be it, no one can read minds.  _

As Bella reached her government class, Mike brought her out of her thoughts.

“You made it!” he exclaimed. 

“Yeah, it isn’t too hard to figure out the school, Mike,” Bella said walking up to Mrs. Jefferson’s desk. 

“Good morning, Isabella,” Mrs. Jefferson said. 

“It’s just Bella,” Bella said, walking toward the back of the room where there was an empty seat.

Just a couple seconds later Edward came up to her, eyebrows furrowed, “That’s my seat, Isabella,” he said, surprising everyone who heard, especially Bella. 

“Is there an issue?” Mrs. Jefferson asked from across the room before Bella could correct him.

“Yes, Isabella is in my seat,” Edward said, knowing she was waiting to correct him. 

“Here, Bella,” Mike said, standing and emphasizing her name, “take my seat.”

Bella stood up, not breaking eye contact with Edward and took Mike’s seat just next to Edward.

“Thank you so much, Mike,” Bella said with a smile.  _ Edward is so dramatic. _

Exactly two minutes and 32 seconds later Mrs. Jefferson started the lesson. Bella only noticed because at that exact moment Edward started talking to her. 

“What are you doing here?” It was so quiet no one would notice, except vampires with exceptional hearing. 

“I’m here because it’s my second class of the day and I’m following my schedule,” Bella knew exactly what he meant but she found it fun to aggravate this guy. 

“What are you doing in Forks?” He snarled the question out. 

“I live in Forks,” Bella said.  _ This is going to be great. _

Although no one, not even vampires, can hear eyes rolling, Bella heard Edward’s. 

“If you don’t answer my questions,” he didn’t finish the thought. 

“What are you going to do? Because by my knowledge I have been answering your questions,” Bella said. 

“What Alice?” he said out of nowhere she was sitting on his other side. 

“I would leave her alone if she answered my questions,” he answered, meaning for Bella to hear it this time. 

Bella rolled her eyes, chuckled, and ignored Edward for the rest of the class. Mrs. Jefferson was talking about the Gettysburg Address and how it affected the war. Bella wasn’t alive to witness it but she knew people who did, they’re long gone now, though.

When class ended, Mike was so excited to be Bella’s “Hallway Buddy.” “Bella, do you find it easier if I walk in front or behind you? I don’t want to get in your way,” Mike said similar to how a puppy barks.

“You could just walk next to me,” she meant it as a question but it came out as a statement. 

“Yeah that works, too,” Mike said, suddenly bashful. 

“Off to English, it is, then.” 

English went off without a hitch. Edward didn’t bother her at all.  _ Do we really have identical schedules? Why is he being such a pain to deal with? Can’t he be more like his sister who is mute and doesn’t say anything?  _

Gym class was next and the only difficult thing about it, besides Edward being in that class, too was trying to suck at the sports. She had to use most of her attention to concentrate on not going super fast so she couldn’t pay attention to what Edward was whispering to his sister across the room. She knew it was happening, though, because his lips were moving ever so slightly. They were playing volleyball and Bella had to fake knowing how to avoid the ball and was hit in the head twice. 

Lunch was next and everyone from her homeroom was sitting at the same table. 

“This is where we usually sit, you don’t have to join us if you don’t want to,” Mike said and Bella was surprised that Mike would relinquish Bella at lunchtime on her first day. 

“No, I think I’ll join you,” Bella said with a smile. 

She did have to keep up the human act and now was the perfect time to show that. Everyone kept talking to Bella about her day so far and how she liked Forks. Everyone’s reactions were the same when she told them about her spat with Edward in government except Mike who looked like he wanted to tell the story.  _ He probably wants everyone to know he saved me from the big, mean Edward. _ So Bella helped him out by saying “If it weren’t for Mike I might’ve gotten in trouble on my first day,” with a wink at the end. She was most definitely giving into his crush on her. 

After lunch, Mike helped Bella get to Biology. It was the last class he would help her get to, but somehow she knew he would be waiting for her in the office at the end of the day. 

“Thanks, Mike for everything today, you’ve been so helpful,” Bella said when they entered the classroom. 

As if on cue, Edward entered the classroom at the same moment Mike said “you’re welcome, Bella.”

Bella walked to Mr. Banner’s desk so he could sign her paper. 

“It seems we only have one seat open,” Mr. Banner said, pointing to the seat next to Edward.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Bella said under her breath. 

“I’m sorry what was that?” Mr. Banner questioned.

“Nothing at all,” Bella said with a smile and walked to sit next to Edward. 

“If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were stalking me,” Edward said loud enough for the whole class to hear.

“As if I could choose my schedule for my first day here. Even if I could, I would ask for classes without you in them,” Bella said back. 

“All right, class. Let’s get settled,” Mr. Banner said.

He started the class afterward. They were learning about the stages of mitosis so they could later identify it themselves. Bella tried hard to ignore Edward, but she could tell that he was staring at her from the corner of her eye. 

“What are you doing?” Bella whispered to Edward.

“I’m trying to figure you out. One of the most dangerous vampires moves into town, you begin to wonder why.”

“Does my reputation precede me? Can’t I just be here without reason?”

“It’s not like you,” Edward whispered with a sigh, ignoring her first comment. 

“I’m fairly certain you don’t know me.”

“Well, I’m fairly certain that a dangerous vampire wouldn’t be so willing to change,” Edward whispered back, his anger rising.  _ Oh, so he’s witty and easily angered. I think I’ll have fun with this.  _

“My comment still stands that you don’t know me. Do you think that all vegetarian vampires have to start from the beginning of their vampire stage? That makes no sense.”

“Of course not, my brother didn’t start that way. That’s why you concern me. He joined us more than 60 years ago and he still struggles every day with his thirst. You can’t come here and decide that you’re going to change on a whim.”

“Maybe I’m just stronger than him,” Bella said.  _ He has no idea what my weaknesses are. How can he just assume that I’m not struggling? I guess I put on a good face, another win for me. _

“So if your friend Mike started bleeding, you would be fine with it?”

“You wouldn’t be okay with it either, so why are you troubling yourself?” Bella whispered. 

“That’s not the point, and I would be better than you. I haven’t had human blood in almost a century.”

“That seems boring. It might do you good to live a little,” Bella said, standing to head to the back of the room to pretend to use the pencil sharpener. 

Bella decided that she needed to show this Edward character that she was strong. So, she was going to prove that she wouldn’t lose it if Mike started bleeding. 

“What are you doing,” Edward whispered from across the room. 

“Proving you wrong,” Bella said. This was a very dangerous game she was playing, she’s only been off human blood for four and a half days. One wrong move and Mike could very well die. 

She didn’t have a full plan on how to make Mike bleed but it would have to do with the semi-open wound already on his hand. Then it came to her.  _ I’ll just use my super speed to stab this sharp pencil in his wound. He would start to gush blood. I would have to compose myself. It won’t be easy at all.  _ So Bella went through with it. 

One second the pencil was in her hand before the next it was in his hand and out. The next second she was back at the pencil sharpener like nothing happened. 

“Oh my gosh!” Mike shouted.

“What is going on?” Mr.Banner said. 

Bella was back at her seat and it took every ounce of strength she had to whisper to Edward, “See, I’m composed.” She had to hold her breath so she wouldn’t smell the blood she knew was filling up the room. Bella’s need to prove Edward wrong outweighed her appetite for human blood which was something incredible for a vampire on a new diet. 

“This is the kind of trouble I knew you would cause. There are two vampires in this room. Doing that could’ve killed that kid. You’re reckless and you don’t care about anyone but yourself,” he was furious now. 

“Mike why don’t you go to the nurse, it seems your lesion has opened up,” Mr. Banner said once he investigated what was going on. 

Bella stared at Edward, his golden eyes now black.  _ I wonder if my eyes changed, too. _

Once Mike was gone there were only 10 minutes left of class. Bella spent those minutes trying not to imagine Mike’s blood for the second time this week. _I honestly do not understand how I am not devouring him right now._ _Maybe it’s because I have avoided his blood before. The other day at the diner was really difficult for me. Maybe since I went through those difficulties already it became easier to do it again._

Jessica was on “Hallway Buddy” duty on the way to Spanish. 

“That was weird, wasn’t it?” she asked in the hallway.

Bella, still trying to compose herself, nodded.

“Well, anyway, I’m glad I finally get the chance to talk to Bella. Mike has been hogging up all of your time all day,” she said not trying to hide her jealousy at all.

“Yeah we kinda already met so it was nice to have a familiar face on my first day,” Bella said trying to soothe Jessica’s jealousy, it didn’t. 

“I mean if it were my first day, do you think he would show me around?”

“Probably, Jessica. He’s a very nice boy,” Bella said. It was quiet for a few seconds. “Maybe you should go check on him in the nurse’s office,” she suggested once they reached the door to the Spanish classroom. 

Of course, Edward was in that class, too. This time he wasn’t alone. Alice, a mammoth of a man, a breathtakingly gorgeous blonde, and an odd, curly-headed blonde sat with him. 

Bella got her paper signed and decided to sit with Jessica, she couldn’t convince the teacher to let her visit Mike.

“Jessica, what do you know about the Cullens?” Bella asked, seeing if she could give more than Angela provided. 

“Well, they were all adopted by Doctor Carlisle Cullen and his wife. They are all kind of together, too,” she said and saw Bella’s confusion. “Like they date each other. Rosalie, the blonde girl is with Emmett, the large one. Alice, the tiny one, is with the curly-headed blonde one, Jasper. Rosalie and Jasper are brother and sister and not genetically related to the other three so it’s not that weird. Then, there’s Edward, but you already know about him. He doesn’t date anyone, ever,” she said.  _ I'm unsure if she thought she could date a vampire or just very lonely.  _

Mrs. Goff started the class.

“Do you have any other information on them?” Bella hinted that she stay away from dating topics, whispering.

“Hmm,” Jessica thought about it. “Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett are seniors. Although they are all together, familial and not, Edward seems like a loner. When it gets sunny and nice out Dr. Cullen takes the whole family on hikes in the mountains. That’s about all I have,” she said, pausing to think in between each sentence.

Bella didn’t say anything, taking in the information. 

About 30 minutes into the class, Edward whispered to Bella, “I didn’t actually think you’d be able to make it to class today, all things considered.” 

Bella knew his siblings were listening, so she had to choose what she said next carefully. 

“I guess I’m stronger than you thought,” she said looking at the back corner where they all sat. If looks could kill (and if they could kill vampires), Bella would’ve been dead four times. The only one who wasn’t sending murderous eyes to Bella was Emmett who fashioned a smirk on his face. 

The rest of the class went by quickly. Bella tried to rush out of the room, but she was stopped by Edward, family not included but within listening reach. 

“We have decided we would like to invite you over to our house to discuss your choices,” Edward said. Bella looked past him to take a peek at his family behind him. She looked back up to him. 

“I think I’ll pass. I don’t need all of you haranguing me today, thank you,” she didn’t give him a chance to argue. She turned around and left the room on her way to the office.  _ If Dr. Cullen is there, I do not want this to be the first time I meet him. _

By no one’s surprise, Mike was waiting for her in the office.  _ I think it would’ve taken death for him to not be here at this moment, even then he still might’ve tried.  _

“Mike, how is that hand?” Bella asked.

“The nurse said it should go back to healing normally, no need for doctors this time,” he said holding up his bandaged hand. 

“That’s good, Mike,” Bella said, handing Debby her signed paper. 

“So you made it to all of your classes, then?” Debby asked, handing Bella a new stack of papers. 

“Yeah. I wouldn’t have made it without Mike though. He made sure I had someone with me at all times just in case I got lost,” Bella said, knowing Mike was listening in. Debby’s eyes widened. 

“Well, those are the papers I need your mother to fill out. Bring them in tomorrow and that should be all I need on your end,” Debby said, anxious to get the day over with. 

“Thanks, Debby. Have a good rest of your day,” Bella said and walked out of the office. 

On her way to her car, Bella ran into Edward again. 

“I really advise you to come to our house tonight,” he said through his teeth.

“I don’t know if you don’t respect decisions, but I already said no, thank you,” Bella said with a hint of anger. It wasn’t that Edward angered her, it was that she already said no to this question. 

While she was trying to get away, Edward grabbed her arm and stared into her eyes for a few minutes. 

“Is everything all right here?” Mike asked.  _ Always trying to be a savior, that one. Little does he know both Edward and I could do more damage to him than he could repair.  _

“Yes, Mike. Bella was just leaving,” Edward said letting go of her arm. 

Once Bella made it home, she exhaled as if she were still holding her breath from biology class.  _ It wasn’t a terrible first day on the devouring humans’ blood end of it. It was more difficult to ignore everyone’s smells than I first thought it would’ve been. I must admit, what I did to Mike was reckless but I proved to Edward and myself that I can control myself. It didn’t help my thirst though. My throat begged to drink his blood. It was dry as if I hadn’t drunk anything ever. I’m glad I’m home now. Away from everyone _ .

And now she gets to do it all again tomorrow. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so Bella's first day was wild. You had to know something was going to happen. Poor Mike though. So much happened I can't break it apart to talk about it. I kept the names the same for the teachers, though in my opinion there needed to be more female teachers so I changed that, too. This chapter really starts the relationship between Edward and Bella. Also, this chapter is one of the longer ones that I've had so I hope you all appreciated it. Make sure you are sharing and commenting, too, I want to know what you are thinking as well. Also if you are not here from Instagram give a follow @twilight_renaissance


	7. part 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot happens, I suggest reading it

After Bella’s stint with Mike in biology yesterday, Bella knew she would have to snack before going back to school just in case she needed to prove Edward wrong again. She went out later than she normally does so when Jacob, in wolf form, was in the regular spot she was surprised. He wasn’t with his usual pack either.  _ Maybe he came back once he realized I wasn’t here. Maybe things are rougher than he lets on. Mental note: find a way to visit him in human form so I can ask him what is wrong. Once he noticed me I had to let him know I knew that he did.  _

Bella tilted her head and whispered “Are you okay?” hoping not only that he could hear her but that he understood too. When his eyes saddened and he tilted his head, she knew the answer to her question. 

Back at her house, Bella saw a car that wasn’t usually parked down the street. She recognized it from the school parking lot, though she didn’t know who the owner was. Once she got back to her house she could smell that it wasn’t the Cullens looking to talk to her about her decisions, and she breathed a sigh of relief. 

She walked to her front porch through the back of her house. As she arrived on the front door she could see through the glass panels surrounding the door that it was Mike.  _ Doesn’t this guy have anyone else to talk to? _

“Mike?” Bella questioned once she opened the door. “How long have you been waiting here?” she asked.

“Maybe like 10 minutes,” he answered. “I saw your car was still here so maybe you were just in the shower.”  _ What an odd boy he is. _

“I went to explore the forest after I finished my homework,” she said and concern struck his face.

“Alone? At night?” he asked.

“Yes, Mike. What are you doing here? Also, how did you know where I lived?”

“It’s a small town, Bella. I was wondering if you could tell me what the biology homework was. I would’ve texted you but I don’t have your phone number,” he said.  _ Why would he come all the way here just to ask this? He clearly had other motives. _

“Why didn’t you get the homework from your table partner or even Jessica. I’m sure you have their numbers,” Bella said. 

“You’re right, I do. I guess this was a pathetic excuse for me to get your phone number,” he admitted. 

“Okay come in,” Bella said. 

“Is your mother home?” he asked.

“Nope, she’s still at work. The move was hard for the company, so they lost their biggest asset. She has to work late sometimes because of the time difference. The East Coast offices close at 10 pm and it takes that three-hour difference to transfer documents.”

“What does she do anyway?”  _ A reasonable question I was hoping no one would ask. _

“She’s a lawyer for a really big company,” Bella started. “The biology homework were the questions on pages 59 and 60,” she finished before he could ask what company. She reached out her hand for his phone, too. He handed it to her and she typed her number in it, making her contact name “Bella✨ 🌚 " hoping he wouldn’t question the choice of emojis. While she did that he did the same naming himself “Mike from school 🤓 🏈 "

“Is that all you needed?” Bella asked after the exchange.

“Yeah, I think it is,” he said walking toward the door.

“I’ll see you in school tomorrow,” Bella said, closing the door behind him. 

“Yeah you too,” Mike said through the door. 

Bella received a text from Mike from school 🤓 🏈 before she heard his car startup. “ Thank you,”  the text read. Bella didn’t respond.

The next day at school was semi-normal. As much as it can be with a whole vampire family after Bella. Edward and his family left Bella alone the whole day. There were no glares in government, no side-eyes in English, no bad eyes in biology, and no scowls in Spanish. 

However, lunch was different. The only Edward and Company could do were stare at Bella.  _ I wonder what is up with the staring now? It was fine all morning. _

“Bella, aren’t you eating today?” Angela asked when everyone was seated at the table. 

Bella forgot that she needed to eat lunch every day. “Oh, my stomach doesn’t feel well right now,” Bella told Angela. Mike, who was sitting next to Bella immediately shot her a look of concern. “I’m fine,” Bella assured Mike.

So, Bella took to looking at the Cullens to return the favor. They were far away and surrounded by chatter from the cafeteria, but if Bella tried her hardest she could focus on them.

It was difficult to get past everyone else in the room but she managed to pick out Edward’s whispers, of course, he was the only one talking.  _ Is everyone in that family mute? _

Tired of only hearing Edward, Bella asked the table “Do the other Cullens talk?”

“Yeah they talk, why wouldn’t they,” Jessica responded.

“Have you ever actually heard them speak anything?” Bella asked and peeked at the Cullens’ table and they were all grinning. They had heard Bella talking. 

“Yeah I mean,” Jessica began, thinking about each encounter she had with all of them. “Alice and Angela were partnered up for a project last year,” she continued.

“Really? What was she like?” Bella turned, asking Angela.

“She was nice. We finished the project in one class period but it took everyone else two. She definitely talked to me,” Angela said.  _ Was she trying to convince me or herself? _

“They talk, why are you bringing them up?” Mike said, the jealousy clear in his voice. 

“I was just certain I haven’t heard any of the others talk besides Edward. 

“Try talking to them in Spanish,” Eric suggested.  _ How did he know they were all in my Spanish class? Jessica is the only one at this table I have that class with.  _

“Yeah, maybe,” Bella said and carried on with her lunch activities. 

The Cullens did not break their stares for the rest of the lunch period. It made Bella uncomfortable. It made her decide that she wasn’t going to talk to Edward next period in bio unless the class required that she talk to him.

Bella succeeded in ignoring Edward through biology so she did the same for Spanish. That worked, too.  _ Maybe pretending they don’t exist is a good idea.  _

Her day was looking up, ignoring Edward Cullen and his siblings brightened her mood. She was the happiest she’s been since she took that trip to Portland. She couldn’t think about that because thinking about it led to dangerous thoughts and eventually down a dangerous path, too. 

When she was in the parking lot ready to leave and go home, she heard her name from a familiar, irritating voice she knew too well.  _ It was good while it lasted. _

“Bella, maybe if you decided to come to talk with my family, you would know if they talk or not,” Edward said and Bella searched the lot to see where the voice came from. She couldn’t spot him, though the golden strands of Rosalie’s hair flowed near a car. Bella stared at Rosalie and Rosalie shook her head no. “I’m not there Bella. I thought you were a great vampire, you can’t be so great if you can’t even find me,” Edward said, knowing this would bother Bella.

She had to find him now. She paused and tried her other senses. She took a deep breath smelling every scent around her, her nose searching for Edward’s distinct smell. When she found something similar she opened her eyes, but it was Emmett, not Edward. 

Emmett shrugged with his palms upward as an apology for Edward’s antics. “You’re getting close though, Bella,” Edward said. Bella thought, for longer than necessary, about where Edward could be.  _ Emmett was wearing Edward’s bookbag which was why the smell was similar. Edward seems like he would be the one to trick me, too.  _ After 30 more seconds of thinking, she took another deep breath. The smell was everywhere.  _ He played me _ .

Bella bent over to look under her car and lo and behold Edward was there. “You like playing games, Cullen?”

“Not particularly but it seemed to irritate you, so that was fun,” Edward said grinning. He was standing too close to Bella now.

“So you enjoy irritating people?”

“No, but fair is fair. You irritate me so I’ll do it back,” Edward said. “Of course he’s here,” he whispered the last part to Bella, confusing her in the process. 

“Who the…” was all Bella could say before Mike was peering around the car next to Bella’s and Edward was long gone. “Mike, I was just getting ready to leave. Do you need anything?” Bella managed to get out before Mike could say anything.

“Nope. Just wanted to see how your second day was going,” Mike said. 

“It was good, Mike. For future references you can text me, that is what we exchanged phone numbers for,” Bella said.

“I know. I like talking to your face better though,” Mike said.  _ If this was his way of flirting it wasn’t going well _ .

No one said anything.

“Honestly, I came here for another reason, too,” Mike finally said.

“Of course you did,” Bella said.

“So, in a few weeks, the school is going to have a homecoming game and dance. Since I’m on the football team, I was wondering if you would wear my jersey that day and let me escort you to the dance,” Mike asked. 

Suddenly Bella regretted playing into his crush. “Truthfully, Mike, I am so grateful for all of your services today and yesterday but no thank you. I think Jessica would be very angry with both of us if we went along with that.”

“Jessica?” Mike was completely stunned that Bella suggested that.

“Yeah, Mike, she totally likes you. You should ask her to the dance,” Bella suggested. 

When Bella arrived home, she immediately did all of her homework. It was pretty easy for her, even though she didn’t spend years learning the same material. In English class, Mrs. Mason gave everyone an essay to write. The essay would be about a moment in life told by someone else. Bella stared at the assignment sheet before deciding it could wait another day, it wasn’t due for another week. _ I don’t get how this relates to anything. We’re reading “Catcher in the Rye” in class. I don’t even know which moment I’ll choose. _

When Bella finished up the rest of her homework, besides that essay, she decided if she would be able to find Jacob roaming around anywhere. She drove into town, parked at the diner, and walked. Luckily, she had her camera in her car so she brought that with her, too. The fog that dusted the air made an incredible subject to photograph. 

Bella was around the whole town taking pictures before she realized that if she didn’t get back she would miss Jacob.  _ Even though he’ll be in wolf form, it’ll be nice to see him again. Maybe even then I could tell him to meet me as a human somewhere. _

So, Bella did exactly that. She went to their meeting spot, perched on the rocks, and waited for the pack to arrive before she hid. 

“Jacob, I don’t know if you can hear me or understand me, even though that exchange we had last night suggested you can, I want to ask you something,” Bella started. “I want to talk to you, as a human, sometime. Maybe Friday or something we can meet at the line and talk.”

Wolf Jacob just stared at Bella so she took that as a yes, waited for four minutes then left. 

The next three days at school pass by in the blink of an eye. Nothing changes except the Cullens, Edward especially, actually leave Bella alone. No pranks in the parking lot at the end of the day, no comments about her in the classes, and no weird stares at lunchtime. She was disappointed that she wouldn’t have anyone to bother or anyone to test her strengths.

Mike was still clinging to Bella even after the suggestion she made.  _ I wonder if he even considered asking Jessica to the dance. It would be good for both of them to hang out more.  _

Bella had come home after school on Wednesday ready to write her essay. She decided that she would write about a moment in her childhood told from her mother’s perspective, of course modernizing it. 

Then before Bella knew it, it was Friday. Although she shouldn’t have been, because of the whole “sworn enemy” thing, Bella was excited to be able to communicate with Jacob through more than stares. 

She was just a drive away when the infamous Mike stopped her before she could leave the parking lot.  _ Oh my, what does he want now? _

“Bella, I’m glad I caught you before you left,” Mike said.

“What’s up?” Bella said, trying to hide her annoyance.

“I was thinking about what you said Tuesday, that I should ask Jessica to homecoming,” Mike said. 

“Yeah,” Bella encouraged him.

“I’m disappointed you don’t want to go but would you help me with a plan to ask her?”

“Yeah, Mike. Can we discuss this some other time? I have to be somewhere,” Bella said.

“Yeah, of course, Bella. I’ll text you about it this weekend,” he said and Bella hopped in her car and left. 

Once Bella got home she decided the line was close enough to her house. She didn’t bother putting anything in the house she just took off once she arrived. 

She waited at the spot that Jacob showed her only a week ago. She waited for about an hour before she decided to be anxious about it.  _ I never told him the time to meet. I also don’t know if he understood me. There are a lot of holes that I could’ve cleared up before making these plans. _

After another 15 minutes, she heard walking in the distance. The walking sound was too long paced for something with four legs, so whatever it was it walked on two legs. It took eight minutes for the sound to become a person and from what Bella could make out in the distance, it could’ve embodied a large teenage boy. As the figure moved closer, she could tell that it was Jacob. He was across the line so she refrained from walking to meet up with him. 

“Hey, Jacob!” she called out.

“Hi Bella!” he called back. 

They didn’t say anything until they were closer. 

“What’s up? I could tell that some things were going on with you. I just want to make sure you’re okay and it isn’t anything I caused,” Bella said, concerned.

“Yeah, well, it kinda is your fault. Not in the biggest way though. When we are wolves we can read each other’s minds of the pack we’re in. So I’ve been trying so hard to not think about you while I’m a wolf. It also only works at certain distances, as I’m sure you experience stuff like that,” Jacob started and Bella nodded, letting him finish. “Last Friday, after we had our talk, I may have briefly had a thought of you while we were on a run.”

“So, you’ve been reprimanded?” Bella asked, concerned. 

“To say the least. It wasn’t even a fully formed thought, just a quick memory from the very first we were all chasing you. Everyone was angry and thought it was a recent memory and yelled at me for hiding you from them. They knew a vampire was in town, but they assumed they chased you away from that first time. It’s all very complicated.”

“I’m sorry that I have been putting you through this. I can stop meeting you and stop communicating with you if that is better, Jacob,” Bella said, reaching out to touch his shoulder in comfort but quickly pulled her hand back, deciding against it. 

“You’re not the only thing I hate about my situation. Sam, the leader of our pack, doesn’t live up to how everyone else describes him and I don’t agree with some of his decisions,” Jacob said. 

“I don’t mean to offend you and if this question does, ignore it but, can’t you quit and make your own pack?” Bella asked. 

“I actually can because my ancestors have been the Alpha in the past. I’ve been offered to be the Alpha but I couldn’t take it from Sam. He’s been the leader for so long that no one would follow me, a rookie wolf.”

“I’m new to all of this, but don’t wolves have to follow the Alpha anyway because they are the Alpha and the strongest of them all?”

“You’re right, but I just phased. Even becoming the Alpha right now doesn’t automatically guarantee strength. It would take a couple of years to catch up to Sam,” Jacob said. 

“Well, in a couple of years then,” Bella encouraged. 

They were quiet for a while. 

“You haven’t been hunting humans, have you? I’m afraid if you have, our connection will be meaningless and we will have to terminate you,” Jacob said, lightening the mood and being serious at the same time.

“Nope, human-free. Scout’s honor,” Bella said, holding up her hand. “It’s really strange because at times it feels like it did when I was a human, no thoughts of blood at all. On the other hand, one of the Cullens, apparently, has been doing the no humans thing for over 60 years and he struggles immensely.”

“Maybe you’re just stronger,” Jacob said.

“That’s exactly what I said, Jacob!” Bella exclaimed. 

“You can call me Jake, most people do,” he said. 

“Okay then, Jake. What is the first rule you’re going to make after taking your spot as Alpha?”

He thought about the question for a few minutes. “I think I’ll make it clear that I’m not as controlling as Sam. The thing is that even when we are human he is telling me what to do.”

“That’s a good rule, independence.”

Bella and Jake went back and forth talking about nothing until the sun went down and he had to go.  _ It feels like being a kid again when I’m hanging out with him. If the circumstances were different I could get used to being his friend.  _

Bella went home, decided she didn’t need a late-night snack and finished reading her book for English class. 

Then, Saturday rolled around. Mike had texted Bella yesterday about his plans for homecoming while Bella was with Jake. 

“Bella I think that I should do one of those big proposal things that go viral on the internet,” Mike texted. _What is he even talking about?_ Confused, Bella went to Google on her phone to look up what he was talking about. 

Bella was unsure if Mike was creative enough to make a pun about Jessica that wouldn’t offend her. “ I think you should just ask her simply, as you did to me ,” she responded. It was early in the morning on a Saturday, so she didn’t expect a reply when it came through.

“ I guess that could work. I feel like it needs to be big though to make up for asking her second. ”

“ Mike, you don’t have to tell her that she was second. Just ask her. She’ll say yes, ” Bella responded hoping it was the last one, she didn’t understand the fuss he was making. 

There wasn’t a reply and Bella was thankful. She thought about texting Jessica and spilling that Mike was going to ask her to homecoming and she should ask him instead, but Bella didn’t feel like being in the middle of it. Instead, she decided to get her blood fix now, leaving time to do other things. 

Since she was using the forest around her house more frequently, she decided to make a run to the mountains. It was early enough that the fog on the ground hadn’t risen to the sky. Once Bella was above the fog, the sun was out. A sight that Bella hadn’t seen for too long.

Since no one was around, she decided to take in the heat of the sun, as much as she could.  _ Laying in the sun for a vampire is what I imagine it’s like for cats to find a sunny spot in the house and laying there.  _

She stayed there longer than planned and waited until the fog rose to continue with the hunt. Once she was on the prowl, nothing stopped her. She made her way through two coyotes when she decided she had enough. She considerately moved the bodies of the coyotes so any travelers wondering wouldn’t find them, but other animals could feast on them. 

Back at home, it was only late afternoon and Bella didn’t know what to do.  _ Maybe this was why Edward was irritating most of the time. He didn’t know how to spend his boring life. _

She later decided to go ahead on her assignments for school. There was a bigger essay due in English class, a PowerPoint presentation due in government and a partner project due in Spanish, she read from the syllabi she received in the papers for her “mother” to sign.  _ We don’t even have assigned partners for that Spanish project, but no harm in beginning early. These are all for something called midterms which from my extensive research of modern-day high school is to help prepare you for college. It’s mainly for teachers to see how hard the work needs to be for the rest of the year. It seems odd to me that all of this heavy work is due just before a holiday.  _

Bella took out her phone and looked up what a PowerPoint presentation was. She knew that PowerPoint was computer software but she never used it before or quite understood what it was.  _ Maybe I can ask Mike about it, he’d love to be able to teach me something _ , Bella thought with an eye roll. 

Bella decided she would need to get a home computer or laptop, so she planned another trip to Port Angeles.  _ Maybe I’ll take a trip to Seattle _ . Bella planned her trip to Seattle instead of Port Angeles. 

After working on future assignments for a near 2 hours Bella decided to take a break. She went outside to walk around her property.  _ I could get used to walking more. There are many benefits to running everywhere but now that I’m living for every day it’s nice to see it. Running makes the fast times hypersonic and the slow times fast.  _

Then she noticed something up in the trees behind her house.  _ Is that a person?  _ She walked closer.  _ I guess a better question is, is that a vampire? Why is Edward Cullen in a tree behind my house? _

“What are you doing up there?” she asked when she was close enough. 

“I’m hanging in a tree,” he said brushing it off as if he didn’t get caught. 

“Come down here,” Bella insisted.

“No, I don’t think I will. The sunset is great from up here.”

“The sunset is long gone,” Bella argued back. She wasn’t wrong. It was past 11 pm. The most sunset he could get up there would be the top of the sun dipping into the horizon, but even that was a stretch.

Edward was silent. 

“What are you doing here?” Bella thought the slight change in the question would make him answer, it didn’t.

He was still and silent. Bella only knew he was still there was because she was looking at him. She decided to join him. He didn’t expect that, so he didn’t have time to leave before she reached the same, hopefully sturdy, branch as him. 

“Answer my question, seriously no jokes or sarcasm, and I’ll answer yours,” Edward said after minutes of them staring at each other. 

“Deal,” Bella said reaching out her hand. Edward took it and shook it, lingering his hand for two seconds too long to be normal.

“Why did you move into town?”

“I needed a change,” Bella said, truthfully. She didn’t ask her question for a third time just raising an eyebrow at Edward, waiting for him to answer.

“This is decidedly more embarrassing for me to say out loud than I realized. I might have been watching you every night since I found out you moved into town. Usually, almost on schedule, you would’ve been in the forest hunting right now so I wasn’t expecting you to notice me,” he said with embarrassment clear on his face. They were sitting down now with Bella’s back on the trunk and Edward in front of her. 

“When did you know that I moved into town?”

“Probably last Thursday if I had to guess the day,” Edward said truthfully.

“Why have you been watching me?”

“I’ve been trying to figure you out and make sure you don’t kill innocent people. Why did you pick Forks to see out your change?” Edward asked before Bella could slide in another follow-up question.

“Honestly, before I was a vampire I was always helping my mother out with her nursing stuff so I wanted to get back to that. I knew that if I was going to be living like a human it would have to be somewhere with a lot of overcast days. When I found that the Pacific Northwest has a lot of clouds and rain I knew it was perfect. So then I searched up the best doctors in the area, because a nurse needs a good doctor, and your father was the top of the list,” Bella admitted. 

“How did it happen?” Edward asked and Bella knew he meant becoming a vampire. 

**_Background_ **

“When I was younger I was super curious and it always got me in trouble. Before I turned 14 I always wanted to see the dead bodies my mom worked with. She wouldn’t let me until I was 14, she never told me why but I always believed that my fascination with death concerned her. When I turned 14 and I was able to, finally, interact with the dead bodies I liked to investigate their deaths. I would ask my mom, and because of the time it was a lot of the answers were because of influenza,” Bella started, Edward’s eyes widened at the mention of influenza but Bella continued. “When it wasn’t influenza it would be animal attacks. We lived in Virginia so that made sense to 14-year-old me. As I got older though it didn’t make sense that the animal attacks always looked the same, two bite marks, usually on the throat, and the victim was drained of blood. Without being too suspicious I started asking where the bodies were recovered from. Most of the victims came from a specific area in Virginia so I went there to check it out, more than once. The first time I went I was 17 and I never saw or heard anything. I went back home and the attacks still happened in the same area. I was still a curious girl so I kept going back. I think I went back 30 times before I was 18. My mom started teaching me more than so it was harder for me to leave her because she was teaching me a lot of the time. But I still wanted to witness what was happening for myself. I planned my mom’s schedule so she would have off for a couple of days so I could go back and stay around to see something. Then, I did. I became familiar with the area from being there a lot. It was the beginnings of a really small town, a few houses here and there. I knew of the abandoned houses so I stayed in one of them for those days. An ‘animal attack’ happened in the street in front of the house I was staying at, that first night. That was when I realized what was happening, or what I believed was happening. It terrified me, seeing what was happening. I was still intrigued, though,” Bella paused. “Of course, I went back after that, in between listening to the people who believed in or talked about anything parapsychology related in my town. The town where this was all happening began to recognize me and had words about me so the vampires there were bound to hear of a young woman interested in vampires. When I was 19 I left my mom for a whole week to visit that town. I didn’t make it the first night. Once I got to the abandoned house I always stayed in, vampires were waiting for me. They laughed at me for being a human and being interested in vampires. I don’t know if they wanted me to turn or if they left me for dead because I passed out from blood loss. When I woke to excruciating pain in my throat and everywhere I knew I was a vampire,” Bella finished. 

Without directing a question, Edward told his vampire transition story to Bella, so she could rest from talking. 

“If you hate it so much, why did you agree to Carlisle changing you?” Bella asked when he finished telling his story. 

“Who said I hated it?” Edward answered, without answering at all.

“I’m observant.”

“I didn’t know what I was agreeing to at the time. He just promised life while I was in the middle of dying. A lot of people would find that enticing,” Edward said. “Did you get to see your mother after?”

“Well, seeing as how she was around blood a lot, it wasn’t the best decision. I had that whole week to figure out how to tell my mom I wouldn’t be with her anymore. She practiced nursing in our backyard, the town we lived in was too small to have its own hospital. The rest of that week, after I woke up,” Bella paused to think. “I can’t be too sure but I think it took a day or two to wake up,” she added. “I watched her from a very long distance every day. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy for either of us, me with the blood and her with the sadness. I remember being so thirsty for blood that I couldn’t even feel sad about leaving my mom. After she cleaned up from working at the end of the week, and after I had a heaping snack, I sat down and talked with her. I lied, telling her I was going up North and that she shouldn’t try and contact me but I would write letters to her every few months. I went off to find the group of vampires who turned me and the rest is history,” Bella finished. 

They were quiet for a minute, taking in the information they learned about each other. 

“What is up with your family? Are they mute?” Bella asked suddenly.

“They are not mute,” Edward visibly chuckled. “I talk to them by reading their thoughts,” he said casually. 

“I guessed that. It didn’t seem right though. A vampire who reads thoughts, unlikely. What am I thinking, then?” 

“That’s the issue, I can read everyone’s thoughts but yours,” he said leaning in closer to Bella. “At first I thought it was a distance issue. The first time I saw you, you hovered over an innocent deer. I thought I was too far away so I moved to a tree right above you, hoping that you were too invested to notice me,” he said moving closer to her. “Then I believed that was too far. Even in trig class, the closest you had been to me, I still believed it was too far,” he was even closer to her now. Before saying the next sentence, he moved to be face to face with Bella, a puff of air barely between them. “Then in biology class, I knew something was off because you were right next to me and I couldn’t read anything,” Edward said. 

The tension between them was thick as Edward and Bella held their positions. 

“So, what is wrong with me?”

“There’s nothing wrong with you,” Edward said, pulling away. “Carlisle seems to think you’re a shield, people can’t get to your mind if you don’t want them to.”

“That’s kinda cool, we have powers. Do any of your other family members have them?”

“Yes,” he said. 

“Do I get to know what they are?” Bella asked.

“How about you take me up on the offer to come to meet the family and you can learn about all of their powers there?” 

Bella thought about it for a minute.  _ If I go then I can learn more, which is a super plus. On the other hand, I could go and it could be a setup. _

“Don’t worry about it, we just want you over for a chat,” Edward said.  _ Of course, today I learn that I have super vampire powers that block people from my mind and it is the same day where Edward gets through it. Unless he got good at reading me. _

“Yeah I’ll go,” Bella said. They both began to descend the tree. 

“Okay, so I’ll be around tomorrow to pick you up. Running is usually easiest for us but I’m quite fast and we don’t need you getting lost on your way there. So I’ll be around in a car at, we’ll say 7 pm,” Edward said, they were at the bottom now.

“Okay sounds fine to me. Just one more question before we head off, one for each of us,” Bella said, looking for his approval. 

“How do you spend all of the free time you have? Because in my other life it was easy to misplace hours at a time, now I find myself bored for hours.”

“I journal, sometimes Alice and I play chess, Emmett is always looking for someone to fight bears with, Jasper is surprisingly good at Scrabble. It helps to have other vampires around who are doing the same thing as you,” Edward suggested.  _ I guess I have to spend more time with him then _ . “And for my final question, what is the deal with you and that wolf?”

Bella took a big gulp of air and saliva from the deepest part of her glands she was sure dried up decades ago and her eyes widened. “I’m sure your whole family has been wondering that same thing, too, so why don’t we wait for tomorrow to answer that one?” Bella suggested. 

“I guess you can get away with this one,” Edward smiled and took off.

After that, Bella added journals to her shopping list for Seattle and took a deep dive on the internet for more information about her superpower. 

Once the sun made its way over the horizon indicating a new day began, Bella thought about common things that humans do. They watch television, drink alcohol like no one’s business, use social media, and play video games.  _ I could completely ignore Edward’s suggestion and get into reality television. I could finally be more relatable to Jessica. I could even watch nature shows that Angela is always talking about, too. Maybe they would invite me over for one of their Bachelorette nights if I showed interest in it. I think I’ll get a television. What kind of vampire pretending to be human wouldn’t have a TV anyway? _ Bella added television to her Seattle shopping list. 

Bella spent the day looking up tv shows that she could watch and write about in her journals, it got her a little bit excited for all of the possibilities and to finally have something to do with her time. 

At 6 pm she started getting ready for her visit with the Cullens when Mike from school 🤓 🏈 called her. She was reluctant to pick it up.

“Mike?” she answered. 

“Bella, we have a code red,” he said.

“Mike you never gave me the codebook so you’ll have to explain.”

“Jessica declined my homecoming invitation. She said she was going with Tyler.”

Bella felt bad for him. That was his second rejection; another one might make him fall apart.

“Look, Mike,” Bella began with a sigh. “I’ll go to the dance with you, but I will not participate in any other homecoming activities,” Bella said, defeated. 

“Oh my gosh! Bella! Do you mean it?” 

“Yes, Mike, I mean it.”

“Thank you so much!”

“You’re welcome, Mike,” Bella said. “Now go plan everything.”

Mike hung up the phone.  _ What have I gotten myself into? Now I need to get a dress, too. _ Bella added a homecoming dress to her Seattle shopping list.  _ Unless I use that red dress I got from the thrift store.  _ She thought more about that dress and ultimately decided that it wasn’t good enough for a homecoming dance with Mike. 

After all of that, she looked at the time and had only 16 minutes until Edward would arrive. She changed her outfit from the one she was wearing yesterday to a dark blue shirt and light wash jeans. She debated pulling her hair back but brought a hair tie in case she needed it. 

Before she knew it, Edward was knocking at her door. She felt nervous and excited at the same time, it was a new feeling toward Edward. 

“What have you been up to since last night?” Bella asked once they got into his car, which was in pristine condition. 

“I wrote in my journal, talked to my family about tonight, and thought about what I was going to wear for tonight. How about you?”

“I put more items on my shopping list for Seattle and right before you arrived I agreed to go to the homecoming dance with Mike?” 

“With that guy? Does he know you stabbed him?” Edward said.  _ Do I detect jealousy? _

“He asked me and I said no. So he asked Jessica, I felt bad that he might crumble if he asked someone else and they said no,” Bella explained. 

“When are you going to Seattle?” Edward asked, pulling into the driveway of a massive house.

“I haven’t officially decided, but probably next weekend,” Bella said, hopping out of his car and rushing to his side. “Lead the way.”

“My pleasure,” he said quietly. 

_ It’s time to officially meet all of the Cullens. I wonder how this is going to go. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I'm moving along with this story!! I had a big writing block in the middle of writing this chapter so there were about 3 days where I didn't write at all. I hope it all went well together with that break in the middle. I want to keep writing Jake and Bella as friends, I think that'll be good for them. In my version, he's about 17/18 it hasn't been mentioned but I don't want you picturing a child. 
> 
> that ending tho!!!! Edward and Bella connecting!!!!! She finally agreed to meet his family, even though she's been acquainted with his siblings. And Mike and Bella are going to homecoming together!!!!! What was I thinking??
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter :)


	8. part 8

“Welcome Isabella,” Carlisle said once they entered the house. Bella glared at Edward for not telling him that she prefers Bella.

“Thank you, Dr. Cullen. Please just call me Bella,” she said. Carlisle and Esme were the only ones to greet her.

“You can call me Carlisle, as well.”

_ Does this feel awkward to anyone else? Maybe it’s just me. I can only imagine what they are thinking about me. I’ll have to squeeze it out of Edward at some point. _

“Okay, well,” Bella said after three minutes of no one saying anything. 

“Bella, please join us in the living room,” Esme said and directed Bella up one flight of stairs. 

_ The oddest thing you think you would see in a house full of vampires isn’t the fact that it is fully decorated or the hints that they’ve been around for quite some time, _ cue the graduation cap wall, _ it is the whole back wall being covered in glass windows. Although the house seems to be in the middle of the forest where no one would see them shine in the sunlight, you wouldn’t expect it in a vampire house. _

“Bella, please, tell us about yourself,” Esme said, guiding Bella to sit in a chair. Vampires never needed to sit, but Bella knew Esme was doing this to ease the very obvious tension in the room. Bella felt less nervous now that she was comfortably in the room. 

One by one the other siblings entered the room as Bella was telling her story, just about the same thing she told Edward last night. She spoke fast enough that no one would interrupt until the end with questions. 

There was a long pause after her vampire origin story where no one was talking and it became awkward again. 

“Tell us about the wolf,” Edward chimed in with a smile on his face. Bella was thankful someone said something but he didn’t have to show his excitement so much.

“Well, we have a sort of personal connection. It is a little difficult to explain because I do not believe any of you have experienced something like this. Vampires are the reason that wolves evolve and have to use their wolf abilities. Moving into town escalated that for one of them,” Bella started. She paused to think about how she could delicately tell them she was friends with a wolf. “Ever since then we have bonded.”

Even though Bella couldn’t read thoughts, as Edward can, she didn’t suck at reading people. She knew what they were thinking without needing Edward to tell her. 

“You’re friends with a dog?” Rosalie asked, stunned.

“Rosalie, be polite,” Esme reminded. 

“It’s not like everyone wasn’t thinking that,” Rosalie said, turning to Edward for confirmation and he nodded. 

“Yeah, I guess I’m friends with him. It’s weird to say because we definitely should not be friends but it makes sense,” Bella confirmed. 

“If you don’t mind me asking, how has it been on the new diet?” Jasper asked, changing the subject.

“Edward has told me that you have been having difficulties for a few decades adjusting to the diet. It makes sense why you would want to know how I’m handling it. It hasn’t been too hard for me. At times, I even forget about human blood,” Bella said. Everyone shared a confused look because that wasn’t a normal vampire thought. 

For a while, the Cullens went back and forth with questions for Bella. It was like they were just finding out about vampires’ existence. Bella was a shiny new thing that everyone could play with.

“I think she’s cool,” Emmett said after talking about how many bears Bella has killed, the answer being “Zero, so far. I’m not opposed to it though.”

After the interrogation from the family, Edward pulled Bella away from everyone else to talk one-on-one. 

“So I guess your family isn’t a bunch of mutes,” Bella said, laughing afterward. 

“No, it seems they are not after all,” Edward started. “I told you there would be nothing to worry about. What do you think of them?”

“They aren’t too bad. I must admit I was overly anxious about this. I thought they would try to attack me for once being an insane rabid vampire. I’ve since calmed down. It’s nice they didn’t judge me too hard on the wolf thing,” Bella said. 

“You didn’t hear their thoughts,” Edward said, looking at Bella’s concerned face. “All normal reactions, though for a vampire who is friends with a wolf, someone who is supposed to kill you, you don’t seem bothered by him.” 

“He’s nice and easy to talk to. I’m really glad he hasn’t killed me yet. I guess I’m pushing fate but it doesn’t bother me at all. Weirdly, I feel normal around him.”

Bella looked around the room she and Edward walked into. All the other Cullens were nowhere to be seen but in obvious listening distance. 

“So, what does your family think about me?” Bella asked when they settled in the room.

“They truly like you. Emmett was telling the truth, he thinks you’re cool and he wants to take you to hunt bears sometime. Alice thinks you two could be best friends. Carlisle and Esme find you interesting and they like how you’ve changed. Rosalie doesn’t understand you quite yet but it isn’t a bad thing. And Jasper wants to learn how you’ve changed so much so quickly,” Edward said. 

“And you?” Bella asked and Edward chuckled as his answer.

_ I guess that means I don’t get his answer.  _

“Okay so,” Bella began. “What are everyone else’s powers?”

“Well, it’s just Alice, Jasper, and me. You know mine. Alice sees the future and Jasper manipulate moods. Most of the time he’s just calming everyone down. Maybe you noticed that your nerves calmed down after you got settled, that was him.”

“And do I work for them?”

“Sort of an abnormal way to ask that kind of question, but yes. Jasper had no difficulties easing your nerves tonight. Alice has seen you in her visions before so again it’s just me,” Edward explained.

“What kind of things has she seen about me?”

“Well, she saw you coming into town and killing a lot of people but she said that quickly that vision changed because you decided that you would stick with the animal only diet. She saw how tonight was going to go. I hear everything she sees if I’m around, so I knew how tonight was going to go.”

_ I wonder how much of my future she has been anticipating. I’ll save that question for just her. _

The rest of the evening at the Cullens’ house continued without a flaw. Bella wasn’t bothered by any other questions and Edward clung tightly to her side. Even though she didn’t have to go home to sleep, the night had to end eventually. 

“Are you ready to go home?” Edward asked. 

“Your family is so fun, how could I leave them?” Bella said sarcastically but with truth to it.

“You are more than welcome to come over any time,” Edward said, directing Bella toward the front door.

“I might have to take you up on that offer,” Bella said. 

They sat in the car in silence. The two-minute ride was filled with a comfortable quiet as they both mulled over the night. 

“I honestly can say that I was more worried about this gathering than I should have been,” Bella confessed again once they pulled into her driveway.

“I suppose I knew that,” Edward said, opening Bella’s door. 

“Worst case scenario, I thought everyone was going to try to run me out of town. I guess I didn’t know that much about your family,” Bella said.

“I can confirm that we are a nice family,” Edward said with a smile.

Edward walked Bella to her door.

“I would invite you in but it is a school night,” Bella joked once she entered her home. 

“It is okay, I don’t need to come in,” Edward replied with a smile. 

“I’ll see you in school tomorrow, then,” Bella suggested. 

Edward nodded. He started moving at vampire speed to maneuver his head to give the slightest peck on Bella’s cheek. Then in another blink, he was in his car driving off.

_ What the heck was that?! Maybe he’s doing it out courtesy as they once did in his time. Although he seemed a little jealous when I told him I was going to a dance with Mike. Maybe he’s trying to hint that he likes me. Perhaps his feelings of annoyance, that were so present on my first day of school, dissipated. Either way, I have a new thing to worry about. Vampire feelings.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bella meets the family. Okay, I had to write and rewrite this a couple of times and it still turned out kind of iffy. I know I shouldn't say that to people reading my work but I am. Anyway, though we did have something happen at the end there a peck on the cheek!! What could that mean? I don't know, Bella doesn't know, but does Edward know? Let's keep reading to find out.


	9. part 9

The next day in school was awkward for Bella. She wanted to talk to Edward about what happened the night before but she knew his cryptic ways wouldn’t give her a straight answer. She could talk to Jessica or Angela about it but she knew if she did her feelings would ring through their thoughts and Edward would know about it anyway. For fear of him knowing, she kept it all to herself the whole day.

At lunch, everyone was talking about the homecoming dance.  _ This past weekend was big on asking people to go with each other. _

“I can’t wait,” Jessica said. 

“We were thinking about renting a limo, what do you think Bella?” Eric asked. 

“I think that’s a little bit formal for a homecoming dance,” Bella answered. She had to admit her knowledge about homecoming festivities only came from what she could Google. A few of her searches included any information about renting a limousine. 

“Yeah, you guys that’s not cool,” Mike said, agreeing with Bella with clear disappointment on his face.

“What Bella says goes,” Jessica said angrily. 

“I mean you don’t have to do it just because I said so, but it feels really formal for a homecoming dance.”

“No, Bella you’re right,” Angela chimed in. Jessica rolled her eyes.

After lunch, it was harder to ignore the thing that happened the night before. With Edward sitting right next to her, Bella found it difficult to focus on anything other than him kissing her. 

_ It wasn’t even a kiss. Now I’ve managed to think about it so much I’ve made it into more than it was. It couldn’t have been more than a courteous goodbye peck on the cheek. I can’t let it be more than that. If I let it be more than that and it isn’t more than that, I look like a fool. I can’t look like a fool in front of Edward. I can’t let him see my guard down. It wasn’t anything but a goodbye peck. That is all. _

She finished her thought as Edward walked into the room. 

_ Although, if I think it was a kiss and he thinks it was a kiss, what could that harm? We would have a mutual agreement for that moment and no one would be a fool. If he thinks that I think that he thought that it was a kiss we wouldn’t have an issue. Who am I kidding? I don’t even know what I’m saying. It was a peck. Don’t overthink this. _

“So, you’re against renting limousines now?” Edward asked. 

“I wouldn’t say against. I don’t have much knowledge on homecomings, I didn’t attend high school a million times, but everything I have gathered didn’t mention any limos.”

“You’re still going to the dance with him?” 

“Yes, Edward. Why would I take it back?”

“I was hoping our connection might have changed your mind,” Edward said.  _ Was he talking about the peck or our genuine connection? I wish he was easier to read. _

“I don’t think I had enough time, between last night and today at school, to ponder our connection to be able to decline Mike for homecoming.”

“Homecoming isn’t for another two weeks so I think I have time to convince you otherwise.”

“Why are you so against me going with him to a silly dance?”

“Bella, honestly I’m surprised you don’t see it yourself. He is such a marshmallow.”

“Edward be nice. You don’t know anything about him,” Bella said almost loud enough for the class to hear.

“And he knows nothing about you. You are playing a dangerous game here. He could develop real feelings for you and then where would you be? You would have to tell him why that would be impossible. Then you would have to kill him for knowing too much about vampires.”

“That sounds like fun,” Bella joked. Edward didn’t find the humor in it. “I’m joking, Edward. He isn’t going to fall in love with me, I won’t let it get that far. It’s just a dance. I know that from the decade you’re from that means marriage but not in this one.”

“You’re from the same decade,” Edward said back.

“Yeah but you show the decade you’re from and I’m better at adapting than you.”

For the rest of biology Edward and Bella paid attention to the lesson, even though they didn’t quite need to. 

“What would you have said if I asked you to the dance?” Edward asked when class was over.

“That would depend on your timing. If you are trying to ask me now, I obviously would have to say no. If you would have asked me earlier, maybe I would have said yes.”

“So I missed my chance?”

“Perhaps you did,” Bella said. 

They made it to the Spanish classroom now. 

“Just promise you’ll save me a dance, then,” Edward said, letting Bella in the room before him. 

“I suppose I could arrange that.”

_ I am sure glad he didn’t bring up last night’s peck. Maybe he did subtly but I didn’t make the connection. I just don’t need to worry about that right now. _

Spanish class passed by in the blink of an eye. Bella didn’t know Spanish fluently, but she easily caught the hang of it after studying her book for hours at night. 

The rest of the week went similarly. Edward would discourage Bella from going to the dance with homecoming.  _ Isn’t he 100 years old, why is he acting like he’s only been alive for 15 of those years. I wish he would get over it. A silly dance has his mind in wrinkles. _

Bella, Jessica, Angela, and Lauren agreed on going to Seattle this weekend to shop for dresses, with Bella mentioning she needed some other things for the house. 

Mike wasn’t as bothersome as he had previously been but he was still ever-present.  _ It could be that he is nervous about this event, it is a big game day for him or maybe he thinks that he has a hold on me now that I agreed to this dance. _

When she saw Jake in the forest, he wasn’t as morose as he had been but he wasn’t ecstatic, either.  _ I wish there was a way I could help him. I know my being around can’t be good because he has to fight so hard to not even think about me. I wish we could be friends in a world where mind-reading was obsolete. _

Then Friday arrived. Friday was the same as every other day except Edward’s conversation in biology class didn’t revolve around Bella finding a new date for the dance. 

“Bella, by any chance do you know the Chief police officer of Forks?” he asked.

It had been an odd question for Bella to hear after the whole week was spent otherwise. “I can’t say I do, why do you ask?”

“Well, his name is Chief Swan, Charlie Swan. I know I am not very worldly but Swan isn’t a common last name.”

Bella had to think about her family tree. Her mother’s line ended with Bella, but maybe her mother had siblings. Bella’s mother never really talked about her family so Bella might have had aunts or uncles that she didn’t know about. 

“I’m not sure if my mom had siblings, she rarely talked about her family, so he could be related,” Bella said, shrugging. 

“What about your father?” Edward asked. A reasonable question from anyone. Perhaps Bella could have a reasonable answer if she knew what to answer.  _ For as long as I knew it, it was me and my mom. I don’t remember any father in my life, ever. _

“I don’t have one,” Bella answered reasonably. 

“Sure everyone has a father.”

“I mean yeah there was a sperm but I don’t know who he was.”

Edward sensed the way this conversation was going so he decided to change the topic.

“So, you’re going to Seattle tomorrow?”

“Yes, with Jessica, Angela, and Lauren,” Bella answered, thankful for the change in subject.

“You better hope the weather stays like this for you. There’s a lot of people in Seattle,” Edward said, the last part sounding like a warning. 

“I’m almost positive that it is going to rain tomorrow, Edward.”

It was a weird thing for him to mention, almost as if he could control the weather and he was purposefully going to make it sunny. 

When the next day arrived, Bella was glad to see the clouds roll in and the rain started. She checked the weather app on her phone and Seattle had the same weather for the day.  _ Ha! Take that Edward. _

Jessica was the one driving to Seattle. 

“Hey, Bella,” Jessica said once Bella was in the car.

“Hi, Bella,” Angela said as well.

Bella looked around the car, Lauren wasn’t there. 

“Lauren couldn’t make it today. She had to help out at her house,” Angela said, noticing Bella’s confusion.

The ride to Seattle was filled with Jessica and Angela shouting lyrics to songs that played from a playlist on Jessica’s phone. Bella never cared to keep up with all of the music. She had her favorite decades of course but she never went out of her way to listen to modern music. For her, modern music changed all of the time anyway. 

Throughout her years, Bella had been to Seattle before. The last time she was there was in the 70s when a lot was different. Somehow, though, a lot was the same, too. 

When they arrived in Seattle, Bella was on the hunt, for something other than blood. She had an idea of the perfect dress in mind. It took seven stores, a lot of complaining from Jessica because she found her perfect dress at the first store they went to, and determination until Bella found what she was looking for.  [ It was a light blue, polyester, wrap dress with pockets ](https://www.aritzia.com/us/en/product/slit-wrap-dress/70955.html?dwvar_70955_color=10252) .  _ This light blue might’ve been too light, almost blending into my skin tone, but I don’t care for the other colors it comes in.  _ Once she tried on the dress and looked at herself in the mirror the store had to offer, she realized that the blue tint was just enough to show she was wearing actual clothes.

“What do you think?” Bella asked, walking out of the dressing room to show Angela and Jessica.

“Bella, you look gorgeous in that dress, you will definitely turn heads,” Angela said.

“Thank you, Angela. I don’t need to turn heads, though,” Bella said with a chuckle.

“Are you sure about that? Not even Edward Cullen’s?” Jessica asked.

“Why would I need to turn Edward’s head?”

“Are you joking right now? He obviously likes you,” Jessica said. Bella looked at Angela for confirmation and she gave the slightest nod, agreeing with Jessica.

“How can you tell?” Bella asked, obviously confused.

“He’s always watching out for you and not in an ‘always watching you’ creepy kind of way but kind of happy when you’re there and sad when you’re not,” Jessica said. “Although, you’re usually there.”

“Yeah, and the constant trying to change your mind about going to the dance with Mike,” Angela mentioned.  _ Did she hear those conversations? We have to work on our whispering more. I just always thought that he was worried Mike would develop feelings for me. _

“How did you know about that?” Bella asked. 

“Well I overheard it in biology on Monday and Thursday he asked me if there was any way I could get Mike to take someone else,” Angela confessed. Jessica had an offended scoff on her face, wondering why right now was when she learned that information.

“That changes things for sure,” Bella said.  _ If he likes me then the peck was actually a kiss and not a peck. It confirms my initial thoughts about it. Now I have to reconsider everything with that being a kiss and not a peck.  _

“What does it change?” Jessica asked.

“Well, he invited me and my mom over to meet his family and I thought it was a nice gesture. Like a welcome party or something. Except when we got back home, he drove us because he said his house was hard to find, he gave me what I thought was a peck on my cheek. Now you both say he likes me. I'm thinking it was a kiss,” Bella said, adding in parts about her mom to make it a little more normal.

“He kissed you on the cheek and you didn’t think to tell us?” Jessica said, more shocked than before.

“Jess, I didn’t think it was a kiss. I was kind of overthinking it anyway. I really thought it was a goodbye peck.”

“So, what are you going to do?” Jessica asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, now that you know he likes you. Do you like him back? Are you dumping Mike?” Jessica was very concerned about Bella’s future.

“Well, I haven’t given it much thought about how I feel about him. I only just found out he likes me. Also, I’m not dumping Mike, we aren’t anything but friends. If you’re wondering if I’m still going to the dance with him, yes I am. I already told him I would go with him.”

Bella was the last one who needed to get her dress, so once she did that they went to find everything else on her list. Jessica and Angela were too pleased to be spending time with each other to care that Bella took up a lot of time on the trip.

“We should stop at that Mexican place for dinner on our way back,” Jessica suggested once Bella got everything she needed, everyone agreed.  _ I think I can manage to scarf down a couple of fajitas for the fun of tonight. I must admit shopping with these girls has added to the list of things that makes me feel semi-normal.  _

“So, Bella, after homecoming we are all probably going to hang out at La Push as a sort of farewell to the beach because it will get too cold to go there anymore. You totally don’t have to come but it would be cool if you did,” Jessica said, they were sitting at their table now.

“You’re going to the beach after the dance? Won't it be closed?” 

“Yeah, but we want to celebrate,” Jessica said. 

“I’m not sure about that, Jess. If it’s closed you shouldn’t go there,” Bella said. Although what she was mentioning was true, she didn’t want to mention that she couldn’t go to La Push.

_ I wonder if I could talk Mike out of going to La Push after the dance. He seems to be the leader of the group so if I can convince him that it’s a bad idea then everyone else should follow. _

“Well, you don’t have to go,” Jessica said.

Bella struggled to eat her fajitas, not knowing what it’s supposed to taste like greatly diminishes the experience of eating food as a vampire. 

Bella texted Mike discreetly “Are you going to La Push after homecoming?”

While waiting for a return text, Bella listened to Angela and Jessica have their own conversation about everything and nothing at the same time.

“Yes,” was the simple reply that Mike sent back. 

“Why?” Bella texted back.

“It’s kind of a tradition that everyone goes to the beach after homecoming. It’ll start getting too cold to go there,” Mike texted.

“Well, since the dance is over at 11 pm, wouldn’t the beach be closed? I don’t think we should go,” Bella texted. 

At this point, the bill was paid and they made their way back into the car to make the rest of the journey back to Forks.

“What else is there to do?” Mike texted. 

It was a valid question, there was not much to do in Forks. 

“We can have the after-party at my house. My mom is out of town for that weekend anyway,” Bella responded. 

“Okay, I’ll tell everyone on Monday,” Mike texted.

With that settled Bella could enjoy the ride, continuing with the shouting of lyrics. Bella started catching on to the music that was playing, too.  _ It’s not the worst music. If I had to guess, the worst decade for music was probably the 30s, it was trying too hard to be the 20s and it wasn’t quite the 40s. But this decade holds nothing against the 80s. Although that type of music is outdated and sometimes comical today, it was completely original and like no other decade before it or after it, so far. The classical music age of the late 1890s that carried into the early 1900s was a close second for the best decades of music.  _

All of the songs that Jessica played were upbeat songs carrying out the mood of the night. 

Bella was the first one to be dropped off, just as she was the last to be picked up. Both Angela and Jessica helped Bella get the big television into her house, though Bella didn’t need it.

“Thanks for everything today,” Bella said once her things were gathered in her living room.

“You’re welcome,” they both said in unison and headed on their way. 

It was around 8 pm when Bella settled. She started unpacking her things, taking another look at the dress she got. Bella never had a chance to get attached to objects like a dress but she was really glad she bought this one. 

She checked the clock once more.  _ I wonder if Edward is still on his nightly checkup.  _ Bella went out to check. He wasn’t there but it was still early.  _ I think I’ll wait for him. _ She climbed into the tree.

It didn’t take long for him to show up, almost like he knew she was waiting.

“Ever since you told me that I’m a shield I’ve been thinking that somehow that stopped me from being one. Have you been able to read my thoughts since then?” Bella said as soon as she knew he would be able to hear her.

“No,” he chuckled. “You would have to willingly take away your shield and since you just found out about it I think it will take a lot more for you to take it away.”

“So, you know how homecoming is next weekend?” Bella asked. 

“I think I have heard about that,” Edward said. 

“Are you going to the homecoming dance?”

“I cannot tell if you are playing a joke on me, I think you know that I am going to the dance.” He was right Bella did know that. 

“Yes, I am joking, mostly. I was trying to get a good segue into my question. Do you have any afterparty plans?” Edward was in the tree now. 

“Afterparty plans?”

“Yes, plans for after homecoming. Angela and Jessica were talking about going to La Push and instead of telling them I couldn’t go I made them concerned about being up there after it closed. I told Mike that there could be a party here instead. You and your siblings are invited even if you’re the only one to go to the dance,” Bella said. 

Edward just stared at Bella, no response, or hint into how he was thinking. 

“I’ll be there. I can’t account for my siblings but I can tell them about it,” he said after an awkward amount of staring.

Bella didn’t know how to bring it up but she wanted to mention what she learned with Angela and Jessica today. 

“Why do you come around here every night?”

“You know why,” Edward said.

“Yes, you said that you want to keep an eye on me or whatever, but I’m not a danger to anyone and your sister can pretty much keep that under control.”

“I think I like knowing for myself, instead of relying on my sister to tell me what is going on in here,” Edward said with a touch on Bella’s head.

_ I think that would be the closest I’m getting to him telling me he likes me. Maybe I should just give him a chance _ .

“When I went over your house last weekend, why didn’t you tell me how you feel about me?”

“Some thoughts are best kept to yourself,” Edward said.

“Says the vampire who can read thoughts,” Bella said rolling her eyes.

“Let me get something straight, Bella.”

“Go for it.”

“So you come to this town for a new beginning. You want to be a nurse,” Edward started and Bella nodded, signifying the truth of what he said. “So, you’re going to complete the two years of high school and four years of secondary schooling to become a nurse. Then you get to be a nurse. What were you going to do about the blood if you never decided to change your diet?”

“Somewhere deep in me, I knew I needed to change my ways. You talked about how Alice’s vision changed when she saw me. At first, I didn’t want to change. I’m sure you know about Portland. I figured that if I was a nurse and the blood agitated me I could just go get a quick fix on whoever I needed to.”

“It took Carlisle centuries to build up that kind of tolerance to humans. I know that you have shown great resistance with Mike in biology that day but being a nurse means being around blood constantly.”

“You don’t think I can do it?”

“It’s not impossible but at your stage, I don’t think that six years is going to do the trick,” Edward said. He wasn’t arguing with Bella just making valid points. “So, you decided to change your diet but only upon deciding that Forks was where this future could exist for you. That decision was made later than the one to stay in Forks.”

“Right so I figured if I could make a home here in Forks then what would be the sense in ruining that home for myself. I knew that there were vampires who chose not to thrive on human blood. I heard about them. I never knew that those vampires were the Cullens and you lived here. I made that choice to change my diet because I wanted a home here.”

“And do you have a home here?”

“I’ve been trying to have one, yes. It isn’t the easiest when a is vampire questioning your every move.”

“Is there anything missing from your journey?”

“I didn’t think so. You have brought up some good points tonight that have made me rethink the path I’m on though. Maybe I’m not cut out to be a nurse right now or in six years or whatever.”

“So, what’s the new path, then?”

“I haven’t had much planning time, hence the seconds ago I just realized, but maybe you could help me figure it out,” Bella said, giving Edward that chance she mentioned before.

“I wouldn’t pass up that offer. I think we all need to have a purpose in our life no matter how long they last. It would be an honor to help you find yours.”

“I’d like that.”

They climbed out of the tree. 

“You know how I was with Jessica and Angela today?” Bella asked.

“Yes.”

“Angela told me what you asked her about Mike taking me to homecoming.”

“I was hoping as a last-ditch effort that there could be some way for you not to go with him,” Edward confessed.

“Are you jealous that you can’t go to the dance with me? Or is it that you think that this event will lead Mike down the path of love for me?”

“A little bit of both I suppose. Alice has seen an instance where Mike confesses his love for you.”

“It’s okay, Edward. I can go to this dance with him without him falling in love with me. Just let it happen.”

“I’ll let it happen but I won’t enjoy it.”

“You’re too much sometimes, you know,” Bella said.

“You like it, just admit it.”

“I will when you do,” Bella said. 

Edward just rolled his eyes and fled.  _ I guess that works, too. I wish we could have these kinds of conversations on the ground sometime. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so we have homecoming dress shopping in this chapter and if you've ever been dress shopping you know it can either take minutes or hours to find the perfect dress. Also, I know the way I'm writing it they are shopping for a dress a week before the event and that really wouldn't happen in real life but I'm rolling with it. Also, EDWARD LIKES BELLA. She's so smart except for knowing the signs if someone likes you or not. They are figuring out her future together. Is Mike going to be a problem?? I hope not.


	10. part 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The week leading up to homecoming and homecoming as well!!!

When Bella arrived at school on Monday, everyone had questions for her. People she vaguely knew and people she never talked to. The questions seemed to follow a theme of “Where do you live?” and “Am I invited to the afterparty, too?” She couldn’t answer everyone’s questions but she figured the news got out about her having an afterparty at her house.

When she saw Mike in their homeroom he looked sorry for everyone crowding her, he even mouthed “Sorry” to her because she couldn’t get through the door without someone asking her about the party.

“Mike, I thought you were waiting for today to tell everyone the plan?” Bella confronted him.

“I was going to but Eric kept talking about going to La Push so I had to set him straight. I didn’t think he would say anything to everyone.”

“I’m sure he only told one person who told one person and it spread,” Bella assured him. “It’s okay, I’m sure I can handle a whole party.”

“I have a sort of way to fix it,” Angela said. Mike and Bella looked over in her direction. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to listen, but I do have an idea. Since homecoming is for everyone, and just about everyone has heard about this you could make rules for the party. Say everyone must show up in their homecoming attire or bring their ticket because not every single person who has heard about the party is going to homecoming.”

“Yeah, or you could do donations or something,” Jessica added. 

“Or you could have a password. All of the cool clubs always have a password,” Eric suggested.  _ I don’t know how he gets some of his information. _

“All good suggestions, but honestly there aren’t many people here so I’ll just have it,” Bella said.  _ Plus this wouldn’t even be half the size of the biggest party I’ve been to. I went to a huge party at the Palace of Versailles that had more than 1,000 people there and it lasted 5 days.  _

“Okay, well we don’t want you to take on the burden of throwing this party by yourself so Saturday morning we can all come help set up your house before we get ready for the dance,” Mike said before clearing it with everyone else. Jessica scoffed.

“That would be great actually,” Bella said, ignoring that Jessica did not want to help out.

Bella continued to get questions about the party throughout the day she ignored all of them. Somehow, sophomore Steven Graves and his freshman date Emily Russel would have to hear from someone else where Bella lived. 

“Seems like you are yet again another hot topic of conversation for this school,” Edward said in the cafeteria at lunchtime. Bella knew that he wasn’t sitting with his family, without even looking, from past experiences trying to listen to him during lunch. There was too much noise from Bella’s usual table to the Cullens’ table across the room. She looked around and saw an almost bare table behind her. They locked eyes. 

“Yeah, I suppose I am,” Bella whispered back.

“Come join me for lunch today,” Edward said.

“I’m sorry guys,” Bella said standing up. “I was just invited to lunch over there,” she said pointing her head in Edward’s direction. Everyone was confused about how she got invited to sit over there when he never verbally asked her.

“You know, you have given them a lot to think about with that sentence. They’re all wondering how you were invited if I never asked you,” Edward said once Bella sat down at the table. 

“They’ll figure something out.”

“So I heard through the grapevine,” he said, tapping his head. “That you’re having a party this weekend.”

“I told you I was having a party,” Bella said.

“Not one of this scale.”

“Do you ever feel like you have to constantly live up to everyone’s expectations?” Bella asked out of the blue.

“Why do you bring that up?”

“Well, first I had to be the new girl and maintain everything that goes along with that. Then I had this badass reputation because I was kind of mean to you. Now I have to be this girl who can pull off an awesome party. Sometimes I don’t want to be any of those things. Like, I could’ve just been a nice girl who said something mean one time.”

“Do you regret who you are?”

“Not like that, but I do regret some choices I have made. I usually don’t live with regret but now, since I’ve made it look that way, they all think I don’t like you,” Bella said. 

“So, you like me?”

Bella rolled her eyes, “I don’t not like you, I just said that.”

“What would you change about your first day of school then?”

“Maybe I wouldn’t have taken your seat in government,” Bella said.

“You hardly knew that was my seat. I could’ve been nicer too. I must admit my intentions were a little cruel as well. I didn’t believe that you could be the vampire in Alice’s visions.”

Bella looked away from Edward and up at his usual table filled with his siblings.

“Why did you ask me to sit with you today?” Bella asked.

“I wanted to see if we could have a civilized conversation outside of a tree,” Edward answered. Bella was gobsmacked. 

“Have I taken down my shield? I thought the same thing after we talked on Saturday,” Bella said.

“I will tell you if you ever take your shield down around me and you have not, yet. I think that we are more alike than you’re willing to admit,” Edward said.  _ I mean he is right, if we have the same thoughts we have to be so similar.  _

“So, we have the same thoughts, believing that you didn’t read mine, what can you guess about me next?” 

“You are slowly beginning to realize that Mike wasn’t a good choice for homecoming.”

“Edward, no more conversations about Mike, please. This Saturday will happen, just let it.”

“So, that wasn’t a no,” Edward said, noticing how Bella’s expression didn’t change. “Okay. No more conversations about that marshmallow until Saturday.”

Lunch carried on and for once time in school didn’t pass by in the blink of an eye. Bella savored each minute with Edward through lunch and biology. Spanish came and she had to give him back to his family but Bella knew that he would be in that tree at the end of the night if she wanted him back. 

Bella could get used to being kind to Edward. She never had any sort of relationship with a vampire whether it was platonic or not. It might be time for her to change that.

“What did Edward want at lunch?” Jessica asked at the end of the Spanish class. 

“He just wanted to ask me a question, Jess,” Bella said.

“And you sat with him the whole time for one question?”

“I think it’s okay to spend time with other friends.”

“I didn’t think you were friends with him.”

“Well, seeing as how you dropped that bomb on me that he likes me this weekend I’ve decided to check it out myself. The only way I would be able to do that is by getting to know him more. I deserve to give him a chance.”

“Well, Bella, don’t get too attached.”

“What does that mean?”

“I mean that you have Mike.”  _ Jessica you silly, naive girl. _

“Why is everyone so concerned about if I’m in a relationship with that guy. We are only going to a dance,” Bella said and walked away from Jessica to her car. 

Of course, waiting near her car was Mike.  _ I’m starting to think he might be a vampire himself. He’s everywhere and the only way that is possible is if he has some sort of super speed. _

“Mike,” was all that Bella could say without sounding annoyed at him. 

“What was that at lunch today?” he asked.

“Mike, I was just sitting with Edward because he asked me to. We’re sort of friends the way we are. There is nothing to worry about,” Bella assured him.

“Nothing?”

“Yes, Mike, nothing,” Bella answered. He seemed satisfied enough by her answer to leave the questioning at that.

“I can’t wait for Saturday. I know you’re not into the football stuff but you are more than welcome to come to the game Friday night. It would be great!”

“I don’t think football is for me but good luck. Shouldn’t you be practicing for that right now?”

“Yeah, I have practice but not for another half hour.”

“Well, you go to that and I’ll head home or maybe to the store. I do have to cater to every single person here for a party this weekend.”

“I’m sorry about that.”

“No worries, Mike. Good luck at practice,” Bella said and got in her car to go home.

Bella decided that the grocery store could wait for another day, although now she had to figure out what to do to pass time. There was a lot of back and forth about what she should do and what she wanted to do. She should prepare for this party or homework. She wanted blood. 

For the first time in what felt like months, she had the urge to hunt for a human. She couldn’t point out where this new, old urge came from but she had a suspicion that it came from wanting to take her anger out. 

She tried focusing on something else but the thoughts ticked in her head like a timer waiting to ring. She tried deep breathing but since she didn’t even need to breathe it was pretty useless.  _ When was the last time I even hunted at all? I think it was Thursday. I’ve been so preoccupied with my human life that I haven’t taken the time to focus on my vampire life. _

She ran. She didn’t have anywhere in particular that she was going but she went where her feet took her, within the limits of where she was allowed to go. She ended up at the Cullens’ house.  _ I don’t know why I’m here but maybe I can take Emmett up on his offer to hunt some bears. _

She didn’t even have to knock on the door before Alice opened it. 

“Edward isn’t here,” Alice said with a smile once she opened the door.

“I’m not here for Edward, but I think you knew that already,” Bella said back.

“I did know that. Emmett is coming now,” Alice said motioning for Bella to enter the house.

“Bella!” she heard Emmett call from the top of the stairs. “I was wondering when we would see you here again.”

“I’m here to take you up on your bear hunting offer if it still stands.” 

“Of course it still stands. I suppose you want to go now?” Emmett asked, still standing at the top of the stairs.

“Yes, if that is okay.”

“Absolutely! I just have to tell Carlisle and Rosalie and then we can get in the Jeep and go.”

“The Jeep?”

“Yes, the Jeep. Running works but sometimes vehicular transportation helps,” he said and left but not before he was back and ready to go two minutes later.

“So, what’s with the bears?” Bella asked, trailing behind Emmett to the garage where the Jeep was parked.

“It’s a personal thing, I guess,” he said. Bella got into the passenger’s seat and Emmett in the driver’s. “Well, since that was what killed me and led me to be a vampire.”

“Nice, you like your revenge.”

“That’s the last time a bear ever tries to kill me,” he said. “So, what brings you to take me up on my offer?”

“Well, some events in school angered me today and I thought about killing a person for the first time since Portland. I didn’t want to kill anyone so I ran before I could decide which person would be my next victim. I was not going anywhere in particular but I led myself to your house and figured I could go for a bear.”

“The incredible resilience you have is astounding. Jasper struggles every day with being on the animal diet and you seem to take it like you’ve been doing it forever.”

“I’m worried, though, that I might be bottling it up somehow.”

“What do you mean?”

“I want this to work out for me, kind of to prove Edward wrong but that is beside the point,” Bella said and Emmett let out an audible HA. “Anyway, I think in the back of my mind I need to be able to do this so every urge is repressed and one day I’m going to crack and I won’t be able to control who or what I kill in my path.”

“You know, Bella, that is a worry I’m sure most vampires would have. You can always come to me for help on this journey. Edward is a stuffy kind of guy and he will always be the one to tell you that everything you’re doing is wrong. Even though he’ll be able to read my mind and in turn tell you that anyway, you can always come to me for a positive look on your decisions,” he said with a hand on Bella’s shoulder. 

They had arrived in the mountains a while ago but Emmett, considerate as he is, didn’t want to interrupt the conversation to tell her they were there.

“Thanks, Emmett. That means a lot,” Bella said out of the Jeep.

“What happened at school that has you all bent out of shape?”

“Well, I don’t know if you know this but I’m going to the homecoming dance with Mike from class and Edward will not stop telling me about how bad of an idea that is.”

“Oh, yes, I have heard about that one,” Emmett said, starting the journey up the side of the mountain.

“Yeah, I might have figured that he said Alice had a vision. Anyway, he keeps trying to get me to not go with him, and then in Spanish Jessica asked me about my relationship with Mike, as if one even exists outside of friendship. I guess these are menial things to lose control over but I also don’t think I’ve hunted since Thursday. I’m also sure that anger is what fuels my thirst.”

“I understand everything you are telling me right now. Some of us are fueled by many things. Also, for going without blood for about four days might just be a no-go. Is this the longest you’ve been without blood?”

“I think back in the 60s I went a week without feeding because the vampires I was with had an idea that if we starved ourselves the feed would be better and more satisfying. My hunts sort of blend together so I’m not positive it was even a week, but it felt like one. The feed was the same, though if you were wondering.”

“I would love to hear more stories about nomad life as a vampire. I’ve been a non-nomad my whole vampire life.”

“It was pretty fun actually. I know all of the human killings are very frowned upon but besides that being, in a different place every day was marvelous and almost unbelievable,” Bella said. 

At this point, they had made it up the side of the mountain and were in the valley between two. Emmett was a pro at hunting bears and knew exactly where to look. Not far beyond the descent of the mountain, there was a lake that would be crawling with fish that would in turn be crawling with bears. 

“This is a good spot for the bears. If you’re cool with waiting for them to arrive here for their fish snack we can wait and calm you down. If you think that’s a bad idea we can run now, too,” Emmett said. This was an out of the blue kind of question, most vampires would just go straight for the attack and not wait for the prey to come to them.

Bella had to wait for a second to see where her thoughts were at.  _ Emmett is so kind. He is much more relaxed than Edward, he could take some notes.  _ She felt calm being able to listen to the running lake water and the birds chirping. The thought of feeding still at the forefront of her brain, but manageable.

“I think we can wait,” Bella said.

“Are you sure? I don’t need you going killer queen on me. I mean I could probably take you but Edward might be upset,” Emmett said looking to Bella for confirmation. 

“Yes, I am sure.”

“Tell me another nomad story.”

“I was just thinking about this five-day party I attended at the Palace of Versailles in the 80s. A lot of things had to follow through for me to be at that party and it was pretty wild. I think it was for some French pop star. It was a different crew than the one from before. This crew had one French speaker who knew a lot about French vampires, Jon Pierre. He took us to Paris to meet the people who turned him,” Bella paused to think about her time in Paris. “It was odd at the time, no one I had ever come in contact with stayed with the vampires who turned them. I forgot to mention but this was years before that party. I stayed in Europe after I arrived in Paris. I loved Paris. There was something about being there that was ethereal, to me. Jon and I ditched the rest of the crew and traveled Europe together. He taught me French and how to find out if there were any nomadic vampires around in Paris. Eventually, we went back to Paris and found another crew to bond with and they dared Jon and me to sneak into the party at the palace.”

“Sounds like Jon was an important vampire in your life.”

“Yeah, he was.”

“What happened to him?”

“Well, at the party we didn’t know how long it was going to last. The stupid dare was to last the whole party and not get thrown out. We kind of knew that parties could last for days and we were crazy vampires. We knew we would need a blood source. Funnily enough, the Volturi were at the same party. We saw them and they instantly knew we were vampires. At this point, they were nothing more than a myth. They thought it would be fun to play a game on us and when Jon lost the game he had to go with them. I assume they killed him.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, what was the game?” Emmett asked, invested in the story.

“We were to not feed for the rest of the time we were there for or feed in front of all of the humans, thus showing the existence of vampires breaking their rules. They didn’t know we were in another bet with other vampires. We could’ve just walked out of that party and lost to the less threatening vampires but Jon didn’t want that, for whatever reason. I knew I could last at least a week before being so irritated. I tried so hard to talk Jon into not killing anyone. He lasted three and a half days. Immediately, the Volturi took him and they fled. I had to stay behind and kill everyone who saw him kill the human. There were more than 1,000 people at that party and I was so thankful that they all didn’t see what happened. The party ended once a worker found the bodies.”

“I guess not every nomad experience is fun,” Emmett said, frowning.

“It was fun up until Jon died. Remember, I don’t think that killing people is as bad as you do. A lot of good things came out of that. I learned French, discovered a love for Paris, traveled through Europe, and I get to say that I partied at the Palace of Versailles.”

“I meant that someone you cared about died but I can see the glamor of everything else.”

“It is what it is, not everyone can be alive for forever even vampires die sometimes.”

Then, a noise in the forest brought their attention to the area it came from. Following the noise was the appearance of two large brown bears making their way to the lake. Emmett and Bella shared a look and instantly knew their next moves. 

Although the bears were large there was a smaller of the two, Bella opted for the larger of the two. Emmett could sacrifice his ego for Bella, she needed it more.

Bella moved quickly, not quite knowing what to do but having an idea of how to attack. She snuck up behind the bear that had not made it to the water and jumped on its back. She was unsure the best spot to go for but it had to be similar to the other animals that she killed. She tried with the neck first. The skin of a bear is much tougher than a deer or coyote so, once provoked the bear fought back. Trying with all of its might, the bear was unsuccessful at knocking Bella off of it.

Bella accomplished knocking the bear out before killing it by rendering it unconscious and easier to kill. Then she went for the kill and was completely satisfied by her kill she forgot the immediate reason she wanted to do this. 

While she waited for Emmett, it started to rain.

“Does the rain bother you?” Emmett asked. 

“No, I like it.”

“So, how did your first bear go?”

“I didn’t realize how difficult it would be to kill a bear. That skin is so tough. It was exhilarating though. Killing something you know can fight back and then when it does, I see why you like this.”

“It’s so thrilling,” Emmett said and began the journey back to the Jeep.

“Do you want me to drop you off at your house? Or are we going straight back to my house?” Emmett asked once they arrived back at the Jeep.

“Yeah, we can just go back to your place, that’s fine.”

Emmett drove back to his house. If he wasn’t a vampire the drive might’ve taken an hour to get to, but due to his speed, it took less than half of that. 

“Here we are,” Emmett said upon arrival. 

Alice met them at the door again.

“How was the hunt?” Alice asked.

“It was utterly delightful,” Bella responded. 

“This girl was wild. She jumped right on the bear and knocked it out. I have never seen anyone do that before.”

“Well, I should be on my way then,” Bella said. 

“Nonsense, Bella. Your clothes are soaked in water and mud. We can get you some new clothes while yours wash,” Esme said, handing her an outfit of clean clothes.

“Esme, I shouldn’t.”

“It’s not like you have to go home and go to bed,” Alice joked.  _ I did, however, want to make it home to talk to Edward about hunting with Emmett today. This is his house, though he could be back. _

“Unless you have a bedtime,” Edward said from a different room. 

“I don’t have a bedtime,” Bella said as he walked into the room. 

Bella took the clothes she was given and went to a completely separate room to change. When she came back everyone else left the room giving Edward and Bella privacy.

“I went hunting with Emmett today,” Bella said once they settled on the seemingly useless couch.

“So I’ve heard,” Edward said with a smile on his face.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I’m not allowed to say until Saturday is over but if you ask again then I’ll be sure to tell you.”

“You know, saying that is almost exactly like saying what you want to say anyway,” Bella said, rolling her eyes and sharing the same smile that Edward did. 

“How was your first bear hunt?”

“The hunt wasn’t as good as getting to talk to Emmett. He’s much cooler than you are.”

“I agree with that, Emmett is the coolest out of all of us.”

“Emmett, if you happen to be listening and you hear this you deserve it also write it down or something Edward here probably won’t admit it for another century,” Bella said, directing her face away from Edward and toward the stairs. Emmett didn’t say anything back but they knew he heard it.

“He’s just laughing in his thoughts,” Edward said.

“So, I’m sure you’ll find this out later but I told Emmett about my nomad days and I’m sure you’ll disapprove but be ready for that in his thoughts.”

“I look forward to that.”

Bella and Edward talked for a few more minutes until Alice invited them to play chess. 

“She plays chess, can’t she see what moves I’ll play?”

“Yeah, that’s why we’re on a team. I can hear where she will go and she can see where we will be. It's almost a fair game,” Edward explained.

“Almost fair? It seems pretty fair to me,” Bella questioned.

“It would be completely fair if he didn’t cheat,” Alice chimed in.

“I guess that I will have to see it for myself,” Bella said.

Bella watched as Edward and Alice played a round of chess, showing her how they did it before she took her hand at it. It took about five minutes and 27 moves for them to finish with Edward winning at the end. Then it was Bella’s turn and she and Edward started the game off strong but in the end, Alice ended up winning.

“It doesn’t make sense that someone wins if you both know each other’s move the whole time,” Bella said.

“Well, it’s all about impulse,” Edward said. “Because if either of us acts impulsively it becomes different than our thoughts resulting in another outcome.”

“Is it only ever you two playing?” Bella asked.

“Well, it’s pretty unfair for someone without a power to play against someone with power but they all try. I think Jasper beat me once,” Edward said.

“He has a power though,” Bella said.

“Not one that predicts the next move,” Edward said.

“Bella, your clothes are clean,” Esme said, walking in the room.

“Thank you, Esme,” Bella said, taking the clothes.

Bella left to go into the room she changed in, to change back into her original clothes.

“I guess that’s my cue to go, then,” Bella said once she finished.

“You don’t have to,” Edward said.

“I think it’s time for me to go. I don’t want to overstay my welcome, after all.”

“At least wait for the rain to let up,” Edward said. He wasn’t trying to force her to stay but he didn’t want her to leave.

“Edward, I’ll see you in school tomorrow,” Bella said and left.

The rest of the week seemed hectic for everyone. Bella noticed a shift in the way things flowed while the end of the week approached. The excitement was buzzing through the hallways when Friday approached. Not a conversation happened without bringing up the game or the dance. The excitement that was happening through Bella’s classmates bounced off of them, it was contagious and for the first time in a while, Bella was excited about something.

“The big game is tonight, Mike. Are you ready?” Eric asked at lunch on Friday. 

After sitting with Edward on Monday and receiving reprimands from Mike and Jessica, she decided to keep her conversations to biology with Edward. 

“I’m not nervous at all. We are going to win this,” Mike said.

The football team at Forks High hasn’t won a game in years. Mike has played every game so far this season and the team still hasn’t won. The statistics show that the team most certainly won’t win the game tonight, but Mike was allowed to hope.

“You’ll do great,” Jessica said.

“Is there any way we can convince you to join us tonight?” Angela asked Bella and the whole table looked at Bella, waiting for her answer.

“I’m sorry, football doesn’t interest me at all,” Bella said. It was mostly true, her emotions had been all over the place this week, and even if it was highly unlikely any chance of human blood would be a bad idea for her to be around. She might have changed her mind if she was having a better week.

“It’s okay, Bella. You’ll make up for it with that rocking party the next day,” Mike said.

In biology, Edward was sitting at the table before Bella arrived. 

“I think I got the rest of your time with Emmett on Monday yesterday,” he whispered as soon as she sat down.

“What did you learn this time?” Bella asked. He already told her that he knows about the two nomad stories, she didn’t think there was much more that he could learn about that trip.

“It was bizarre the way I found out. We were having a normal conversation about family things and it just popped into his head. It made a lasting impact on him, obviously,” Edward said, purposely avoiding what it was.

“Well, are you going to tell me?” 

“When you told him that you feel like you’re bottling up your urges and you think they’ll all come out once and you will be uncontrollable,” Edward said. Bella knew he would know about it eventually but she was hoping he wouldn’t have brought it up.

“It’s just a feeling. I don’t know how to stop it,” Bella said. Edward tilted his head to the side in concentration. “I’m afraid that if I am repressing my urges then one day I’ll do something that I can’t control.”

“Bella, that is completely normal. It’s abnormal that you haven’t felt it before or even admitted it to yourself. If you need to talk this through with anyone Carlisle and Jasper would be the perfect ones to talk to about it.”

“Thank you, Edward, I thought you would have another reaction to this but I’m glad this was the one.” Now that Bella had that off her chest she could begin to stress about the party tomorrow night. 

“Do you have everything set for your rocking party tomorrow?” Edward asked, changing the subject and mocking Mike. 

“I suppose. I went shopping for snacks on Wednesday and while I was there I saw some cool lights that I could hang.”

“Do you have a playlist?”

“I have to be a host and a DJ at the same time? I don’t even have a speaker,” Bella said.  _ Of course, it would be Edward to bring on new stress for the evening. Maybe I can make a quick trip to Port Angeles tonight right after school to pick up some kind of speaker. _

“You managed to know everything else about parties except the fact that you need to play music,” Edward laughed.

“It might’ve slipped my mind. I’ve only been to parties, never the host. Always a partygoer, never a host,” Bella said with a dramatic sigh.

“Did you make your own ‘always a bridesmaid never a bride’ quote?”

“I’m a part-time comedian,” Bella joked.

“So, how are you going to fix your music predicament?”

“Well, I think I can ask Jessica to play a playlist and after school, I can take a quick trip to Port Angeles for a speaker.”

“No, need. Carlisle has a speaker system I’m sure he wouldn’t mind lending you.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“Are your siblings coming?”

“I think everyone will make an appearance at your party. Although Jasper might leave early, being around people for a large amount of time isn’t good for him, unless he feeds right before the dance,” Edward said.

They talked through the whole class, not paying any attention to what they were learning for that day. Spanish class was a little bit of the same way, except with his siblings. They told Bella they were excited about her party and to see her house, which didn’t lighten the stress of the night. Surprisingly, the most excited for Bella’s party was Rosalie who couldn’t wait to see Bella’s decorated house. 

When school was over, Bella went to her house to start pulling out all of the decorations she had gathered up. About an hour later, Edward stopped over with the speaker system he said she could borrow. 

“Thanks again for this,” Bella said, setting it in her living room with all of the other gathered stuff.

“Not a problem at all. Is there anything else you need?”

“That couch that is in that room I changed in on Monday, is that in use?”

“What do you need with a couch?” Edward said, looking behind her to see a couch.

“I need another one. I was thinking about taking all of the furniture outside. In the original plan, everyone was going to go to La Push because the weather wouldn’t allow it much longer. I want to bring that into this party so people can still have the feel of the beach without actually being there.”

“So, are you putting all of the furniture outside tonight?”

“No, I just want it all gathered so when everyone comes over tomorrow morning it’s all ready to go,” Bella said.

“Who is coming over in the morning?”

“Everyone I’m going to the dance with Lauren, Jessica, Angela, Eric, Tyler, and Mike. Maybe Lauren’s date, too I just don’t know who she is going with.”

“Why are they coming over tomorrow morning?”

“To help set everything up.”

“What time are they coming over?”

“I’m not sure but early enough so they can leave with enough time to be ready for the dance.”

“I’ll have the couch over tomorrow morning, then and I can also help you set up.”

“Edward, I don’t want any issues tomorrow, but I’d love your help.”

“I promise you there will not be any issues from me, Ms. Swan,” Edward said and Bella rolled her eyes at the name. “I’ll see you in the morning, then.”

Edward left and Bella decided she didn’t have enough lights for what she wanted to accomplish, so she took a drive back to the store to pick up some more. After she purchased them, they went in her pile of decorations. Everything was ready to be decorated for tomorrow. 

The next day, Edward was the first one to arrive, obviously at 9 am. Not five minutes later Mike arrived, too. Jessica, Angela, and Lauren arrived next but not until 10 am leaving an awkward hour for Bella. She knew that if she talked to Mike Edward would hate it, and if she talked to Edward Mike would be mad. She stuck to untangling the lights as they moved the furniture together, surprisingly. Bella took the lights and moved them all outside as Jessica’s car pulled into her driveway.

“Bella, we would’ve come earlier if we knew that Mike and Edward were the only other people here,” Jessica said once she was next to Bella.

“It’s fine, I can deal with a little bit of awkwardness,” Bella replied. “Did you happen to bring that table?” she directed the question at Angela.

“Yes, Bella I brought you the table,” Angela said, walking toward Jessica’s car. 

“So, I was thinking that I’ll drive Mike and me to the dance, or he can borrow my car and drive us there. I just need it there so I can leave like a song or two early to have the lights on and snacks opened before everyone arrives,” Bella said when she and Angela reached the car.

“That’s a good idea. Lauren, Jess, and I are all going together with our dates. Tyler has a van we can all fit in, I think it would be a tight squeeze with you and Mike in there,” Angela said. “I’m not trying to kick you guys out, I’m sure all eight of us could squeeze tight in there,” Angela said when she couldn’t read Bella’s expression.

“No, Angela it’s not a problem. I can take my car.”

When the girls were together they took a break to gossip about nothing and everything. It was an all-girls moment that Bella desperately needed. To sit there and listen to Jessica talk about the new Brad Pitt movie even if Bella had no idea what she was talking about. 

“Are you girls going to sit there and talk all day or help out?” one of the boys asked but it wasn’t Edward or Mike. The question came from Eric and all the girls looked at each other and shared a wondering look, when did Eric and Tyler arrive?

After that, the girls decided to take the lights that Bella untangled and wrapped them around the trees closest to Bella’s house. There were leftover lights, so they hung them from the branches to connect to her house. When the girls finished, the boys had successfully taken all of the furniture out of the house that Bella wanted. It seemed that everything was done for the morning. 

“Bella, I think everything is done,” Mike said.

“Yeah, it looks like everything is complete,” Eric agreed sitting on the couch that Edward brought over this morning.

“I guess everyone can head home and start getting ready, then,” Bella announced. “I just want to thank you all for helping me out this morning.”

Without warning, everyone formed a group hug around Bella, except for Edward. She closed her eyes and hoped no one noticed how cold she was. Thankfully no one batted an eye.  _ I have to thank the weather for that one, it was a crisp morning. _

“Mike before you head out I wanted to inform you that we aren’t driving with the rest of the group. I figured that if I want everything to be ready for when people arrive I would have to leave the dance a song or two early to make sure the lights are on and the snacks are open. You can drive my car, so just pick me up at 7:30,” Bella told Mike.

“That’s a good plan, I’ll see you then,” Mike agreed and left. 

Edward was the last to leave, not saying anything as he left, just giving Bella a wave. “Thank you, Edward, for helping today,” Bella said to him from across her lawn. 

Bella knew she could start getting ready at 7 and still be done before Mike inevitably arrived early at 7:10, but she decided that she wouldn’t rush it and begin at 6. She knew that she would need a little bit to drink before this event started, so when she was sure that everyone was gone she went out and had herself a couple of deer. When she started getting ready she couldn’t decide how she wanted to do her hair. She finally decided to do a half-up, half-down look that would suit the neckline of her dress.

As she predicted, Mike showed up early at 7:15.  _ I was off by 5 minutes but I knew it would happen anyway. I’m being kind for today but I would roll my eyes if this were any other situation. _

“Bella, you look stunning,” Mike said when Bella opened the door. He was wearing black pants, a white button-up shirt with a matching blue tie with darker blue polka dots on it. 

“Thank you, Mike. You don’t look too bad yourself,” Bella said. It wasn’t a lie, he cleaned up nice for the dance. Usually, his hair was spiked up but tonight it was combed to the side. “I like the polka dots.” Mike looked down at his tie and expelled air from his nose as an almost laugh.

“I didn’t know how you would react to that but I’m glad it was positive.”

“I would invite you inside but all of my furniture is out there, so let’s go there and talk,” Bella said, directing him to her couch.

“What do you want to talk about?” Mike asked once they both sat down. Bella, though she didn’t have the same power Jasper did, knew he was nervous.

“Just listen to me, okay?” Bella asked, setting a comforting hand on his knee. “I know homecoming comes with a lot of emotions and sentimental feelings. It is going to be a beautiful night for everyone. It will be a big night to remember. I just want you to know that this between us cannot be anything more than friends. Please promise me that.”

“Bella, oh my gosh, you had me worried that you were bailing out last minute,” Mike said with a hand on his chest. “I know everything that follows with homecoming but I can promise you that we are only friends and only will be friends.”

“Oh thank god,” Bella said without thinking that it could be a rude statement. She saw Mike’s reaction and quickly realized that it wasn’t something she should’ve said. “Oh, not like that, Mike. It was just that I heard that you might like me but I know that Jessica likes you. I truly think that she is taking Tyler to homecoming to make you jealous. I just don’t want to get in the way of anyone.”

“I understand that, Bella.”

The awkward silence soon dissipated into a comfortable one as the sun quickly sank into the horizon and night began to fall.

“I forgot to ask you this morning how your game went last night,” Bella said as they walked to her car, ready to leave.

“We lost,” Mike said, hanging his head. “I think we were too overconfident.”

“Well, at least you had fun.”

The ride to the school was buzzing from excitement even though they were silent. Bella was excited about her first dance and to see how the school gym looked decorated. Mike was excited to spend a night not worrying about football and letting loose with his friends. 

“I can’t wait to see how everyone looks,” Bella said when they arrived.

“Didn’t you go shopping with Angela and Jessica?”

“Yeah, but it’s not like they had all of their makeup on or they were with their dates.”

“Are we supposed to wait for them out here or go in without them?”

“I think we can just go in,” Bella said, dragging Mike to the gym entrance.

When they entered the room they were told to lock arms so they could be announced. 

“Is that a normal thing?” Bella asked.

“It’s never happened before,” Mike answered.

_ Maybe it has to do with the theme being “A Night in Paris.” I know, from my experience that at the Palace of Versailles, they announced people if they had a high enough status, which for that kind of party was everyone except the servers. For not wanting to make a scene, Jon and I snuck in through the kitchen. Forks, Washington is far from Paris, France but maybe for the night, I can relive that memory. _

As they moved up the line one of the student council members asked their names and what grade they were in. They answered truthfully. Before they knew it they were next to enter. When they were announced everyone erupted in cheers.

“Bella, over here,” Jessica waved from across the room, ordinarily Bella wouldn’t have heard that because of the amount of noise in the room but she has gotten very used to how Jessica’s voice sounds. Bella gave a little jog, at human speed to where she was calling from. Jessica wore a dark, purple, satin, knee-length, dress with spaghetti straps that criss-cross all over her back and double helix curls that flowed in her hair and down her back. 

“You look so pretty Jessica,” Bella said as Angela walked up next to Jessica. “You too, Angela.” Angela wore a yellow, mid-length, tulle dress where the skirt was all yellow, the top was all flowers and her hair was a side part wrapped around her shoulder that flowed into one curl.

They waited at their table until the chaperones shut the doors indicating the dance officially started. Jessica dragged Angela who dragged Bella to the dance floor to begin dancing. They weren’t dancing just bouncing to the beat of the music, but Bella was exhilarated. Somehow while being a vampire she learned how to live. Although her living had to be monitored, she enjoyed the life she made for herself the past month.

The night passed on with upbeat song after upbeat song leaving room for only a few slow dance songs. As  [ a song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3BD6NQCGrA) that Bella recognized from the 80s played through the speakers, Edward approached her.

“You are breathtaking,” Edward said, bending to whisper it in her ear with a hand on her lower back. Jessica and Angela shared a surprised look, ready to give them privacy. “The next song is ours,” he said and walked away. The next four minutes were some of the slowest minutes she ever experienced.

Seconds before the song finished, Edward pulled Bella away from Jessica and Angela. He put his left hand in the center of Bella’s back and with his right hand, he delicately held hers. The intro played and they began dancing. 

Bella didn’t recognize  [ the song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtp72RnFaRU) that was playing, but the song was infused with the emotions that they both were feeling. They didn’t say a word to each other during the whole dance, taking in everything that was happening. If Bella had a heartbeat, Edward would be able to hear it speed up. The song carried on and they were immersed in each other, not caring about all of the people suddenly watching their waltz through the gymnasium floor. As the song ended, Bella was disappointed it wasn’t longer.

“You amaze me,” Edward said and left to be with his siblings leaving no time for Bella to say anything to him.

“Bella, you know how to dance?” Eric asked when she rejoined the group. The whole group joined on the dancefloor to shout the lyrics to “We Will Rock You” by Queen. 

“Yeah, I’ve learned a dance or two,” Bella said, trying to be coherent over the herd of yelling people. 

As the night went on, Bella learned new dances as well. She learned “The Cupid Shuffle,” “The ChaCha Slide,” and “Cotton Eye Joe.” 

“Can I have this dance?” Mike asked as  [ another slow song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGF7PswOENQ) came on.

“Of course,” Bella answered. 

The dance didn’t compare to hers with Edward but the moment made this one. She looked around her to see all of the friends she had made dancing and having a good time. That made this moment with Mike special. 

“Thank you for the dance,” Bella said when the song ended. 

“No problem,” Mike answered. 

A few more songs played before Bella knew it would be time for her to go.

“Mike, are you leaving with me?” Bella asked.

“Do you need me to leave with you?”

“I don’t think so. I think I can handle lights and snacks alone. I was just checking in. I’ll see you later,” Bella said, giving Mike a side hug and a peck on the cheek.  _ This was a friendly goodbye peck, no feelings attached. Maybe Edward can learn something from me. _ She collected her things, headed for her car, and started her way home.

When she got home, she turned on the lights, opened the snacks, and put on the playlist Jessica made for the night. The songs that Jessica chose for tonight were different than the ones she had for the car ride. 

As people started arriving at Bella's house, she became more nervous that people were going to hate the party. It wasn’t like Bella to be nervous about a small thing like a party, but that was where her emotions went.

Her homecoming group was the first people to arrive. A few groups Bella didn’t recognize arrived next, then the Cullens arrived. Once she was in the vicinity of Jasper, she could finally calm down.  _ I have to praise whoever made his power because it is always useful. There is never a time where I don’t want him to calm me down.  _

“You’ve set up the place very nicely,” Rosalie said when she saw Bella. 

“Thank you, Rosalie,” Bella said, smiling at her.

The night passed on and Bella hadn’t heard from Edward. She knew he was there because the family car was still parked in the same spot it was in the whole night. More people came and went. Steven Graves and his date Emily Russel did find Bella’s house. Some people showed up in their homecoming attire while others came in jeans and t-shirts. The night was going well. 

“We wanted to thank you for having us over, Bella. We loved it,” Alice said, hugging Bella. 

“Thank you all for coming. Is Edward leaving with you? I haven’t seen him all night,” Bella wondered.

“I think he’s staying along with Emmett and Rosalie. We have to get Jasper home,” Alice said.  _ Why did she talk about Jasper like he wasn’t there or like he was a child that needed to be put to bed or like an animal that needed to be put outside?  _

“Okay, I’ll see you both Monday, then?”

“Yeah, probably,” Alice said, hopping in the car and driving off.

About an hour passed and the party was dying down. Only a few groups were left, including Bella’s group. 

“I don’t want this night to end,” Eric shouted with a fresh sheen of sweat on his face from dancing. Bella checked the time, for what felt like the first time the whole night, 11:52 pm. Still, she didn’t know where Edward was. 

“Bella, you do know how to throw a rocking party,” Emmett said, giving Bella a fitting bear hug.

“Thank you, Emmett. I suppose you both are leaving now,” Bella said, looking at both Rosalie and Emmett. 

“Yeah, it’s about that time,” Rosalie said. Bella hugged both of them and thanked them for coming.

Bella went into her house in search of Edward. She went all over the house and she couldn’t spot him.  _ I wonder what on Earth he is doing. _

A few minutes later, she finally found him and went to talk to him.

“I have been looking for you all night, where have you been?”

“I was waiting for midnight so no conversation would be off-limits,” he responded. 

“Are you kidding me? You waited all night so that you could talk to me about Mike,” Bella said, putting her hands on her forehead in disbelief.  _ We shared a near-perfect moment and all he wants to do is talk about some other guy? _

“No, I prefer not to talk about him but if the topic came up I wouldn’t have to avoid it,” Edward said they were sitting on his couch now.

“That was some performance you put on with that dance.”

“I would say the same thing about you. Who knew you could waltz?”

“For the record, I knew that I could.”

“Where does the Isabella Swan learn how to waltz?”

“It was when I was gallivanting around Europe. I’ve been to my fair share of fancy gatherings.”

“Every time I learn something new about you I,” Edward stopped in the middle of his sentence his eyebrows furrowing.

“You what?”

“It might be inappropriate.”

“Say it,” Bella encouraged with a nod.

“Every time I learn something new about you I,” Edward started again, hesitating. “I like you so much more than the minute before when I didn’t know it.”

_ He finally admitted his feelings, but what do I do about it? _

She didn’t have any more time to think about what Edward was feeling or what she was feeling because Edward’s lips closed in on hers and he was kissing her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy moly. This was a lot to write!!!!!!! Emmett and Bella sharing a moment!!!!!!! Bella beginning to rely on the Cullens. oh my gosh A lot happened in this and that was just the beginning. Bella and Edward's dance!!!!! I had to listen to that song about 300 times imagining how they would dance to it and I hope you all like it. I hope you like the song choices as well. I brought in some chess and the time Bella and Edward had lunch together from the series. I want this to be my own creation but you can find little things throughout that hint to the original works. 
> 
> Now for what you all want me to talk about, the kiss!!!!! I had the thought in the middle of this chapter that they were going to kiss at the end. I know it seems kind of cruel to leave the chapter at that point but I guess you'll have to wait to read the next part to find out what happens.


	11. part 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is another Edward Point of View.

Edward POV!!!!

Edward decided to go back to school on Monday after skipping a couple of days to brood about Bella. Coincidently, it was Bella’s first day of school, and might have been a bad decision for him to come back with everyone’s thoughts consumed by her. 

_ Just when I thought I could get away from my thoughts of this woman, I have to hear everyone else’s too. _

“Who’s the new girl?” a majority of the thoughts rang through Edward’s mind accompanied with pictures of Bella in any way that they saw her.  _ I already know the answer to their questions. She is a dangerous vampire with ulterior motives. Someone who would rip their heads off without hesitation. Someone who would pretend to have changed for the better but didn’t change. _

Edward needed to fixate on something else or he would explode. He recalled the conversation he and Esme had the other night. “You can’t be upset about the things you can’t control,” her words echoed in his head.

The day looks good, so far when Edward walks into trigonometry class and Bella isn’t there.  _ Hopefully, she won’t be in any of my classes and this day will turn out better. _ Edward thought too soon because he walked in and Bella was in the classroom. 

“That’s her,” Alice’s voice says in her thoughts looking at Bella.

“I know,” Edward whispered to Alice’s thought.

_ She’s curious about us otherwise she wouldn’t have asked Angela about us. Angela, too kind for her own good only tells her the facts for fear of offending us. _

As the class left the room Edward and Alice lingered, wanting to follow Bella and not the other way around.

“She’s walking toward the same class as you,” Alice thought jokingly.

“Alice, this isn’t a joking matter,” Edward whispered angrily at Alice.

Bella began walking slower, alerting Alice and Edward that she was listening to them and searching for the other end of the conversation.

“Edward, don’t forget that she can hear you,” Alice thought.

“Yeah, I’m aware,” Edward said back.

Walking into government class began a different story because Bella was in Edward’s seat.  _ It’s almost like she was put here just to get on my nerves. _

“Isabella is in my seat,” Edward complained to Mrs. Jefferson and purposefully using the name she didn’t like to equally get on her nerves.

“Here, Bella,” Mike said, giving him her seat.  _ Ugh, this marshmallow. Does he honestly think that he can protect  _ her _ against  _ me?

_ I’m trying so hard to listen to what Esme was talking about, but it is so hard when she is sitting right next to me. I have to know why she’s here. _

“What are you doing here?” He asked for fear his thoughts would lead him down a spiral. 

“I’m here because it’s my second class of the day and I’m following my schedule,” she answered.  _ It’s like she knows exactly what to say just to get on my nerves. _

“What are you doing in Forks?” Edward snarled the question out. 

“I live in Forks,” Bella said.  _ This is the worst conversation I have ever been a part of. _

Edward’s eyes rolled so dramatically that if it made a sound everyone would hear it. 

“If you don’t answer my questions,” he didn’t finish the thought. 

“What are you going to do? Because by my knowledge I have been answering your questions,” Bella said.  _ Talking to her got on every last nerve that existed in my dead body. I cannot compete with this level of incompetence. _

“Edward,” Alice’s thought rang through Edward’s brain.

“What Alice?” He said angrily, in the middle of the conversation with Bella, leaving her with a confused look on her face.

“Leave her alone,” Alice thought.

“I would leave her alone if she answered my questions,” he answered and Bella rolled her eyes, indicating she heard the reply.

Edward couldn’t concentrate for the rest of the lesson on the Gettysburg Address. He didn’t need to, he knew everything about it already.  _ She is so irritating. I will get her to answer my questions one day _ .

The class ended and of course, Bella was headed off to English class with Mike.  _ The universe decided to give us identical schedules as payment for the sins I have committed as a vampire.  _

The class came and went and Edward left Bella alone. He didn’t want more of his metaphorical headache that Bella was causing. 

“Why can’t you just ignore her?” Alice thought in gym class the next period.

“Not knowing her motives bothers me, Alice. She could kill all of these students in a matter of seconds. That imposes a risk for us, too. People could begin to find out that we are all vampires,” Edward whispered back, hoping the noise of the gymnasium drowned out his voice and Bella could not hear.

“Edward, you know that I’ll be able to tell you if that happens. There is no reason to worry,” Alice thought. 

Edward didn’t want to have this conversation anymore, so even though he could hear Alice’s thoughts he never answered another one for the rest of the class. At lunch, Edward didn’t have the energy to care that everyone sitting at Bella’s table was talking about him. He especially didn’t care that Mike thought he defeated Edward in the government class where he gave Bella his seat. It was the last thing on his mind when the table congratulated Mike for his accomplishment. 

Biology class was next and Edward knew that everything was against him when Bella walked through that door and all of the other seats were empty except the one next to him. Edward was over this day. 

Edward decided that he would try to have a civilized conversation with her. She was still as bitter as ever but at least he was getting somewhere with her. They were back and forth in their conversation and Edward thought it was going okay until she got up to “prove him wrong” and headed over to the pencil sharpener. Instead of sharpening her pencil, she stabbed Mike with it which sent his blood gushing out of it.

_ Oh my gosh. I cannot kill someone in this class right now. Don’t breathe. Don’t think about him. It would be delicious but you cannot kill someone. I wouldn’t want to move my whole family away just for killing Mike. He is meaningless. Don’t kill him. _

Edward tried hard to think about anything else but the blood gushing from Mike’s hand.

“What is going on?” Mr.Banner said. 

Bella was back at her seat and it seemed as though it took every ounce of strength she had to whisper to Edward, “See, I’m composed.”  _ It was like her need to prove me wrong outweighed her appetite for human blood. This was a dangerous kind of strength I am dealing with. _

“This is the kind of trouble I knew you would cause. There are two vampires in this room. Doing that could’ve killed that kid. You’re reckless and you don’t care about anyone but yourself,” he was furious now. 

Bella stared at Edward. He knew she was looking at the change in the color of his eyes.  _ Although her eyes didn’t change from amber, they have dulled. Another factor indicating that she was strong-willed. She is enigmatic; so very hard to understand. _

When the last class of the day rolled around Edward was glad he could spend it with his siblings and not Bella, even though she was in the class. She was curious about the Cullens again this time getting a moment to ask more about us from Jessica Stanley. Jessica didn’t care if what she said was true, she just shared everything she knew. 

After having enough of Jessica, Edward thought Bella could use a break, whispering, “I didn’t actually think you’d be able to make it to class today, all things considered.” 

“I guess I’m stronger than you thought,” she said looking at the back corner where they all sat. Edward and his siblings looked angrily at her, except for Emmett who had a smirk on his face.  _ Emmett, what are we going to do with you? _

By default, Edward was forced to invite Bella over to his house to discuss her actions. It was a thought all of the vampires had during lunch while Edward was ignoring the world. She declined the invitation. Surly Edward had to try to convince her again so he waited for her near her car at the end of the day to advise her once more. That wasn’t enough to convince her but enough to anger her for asking the same question again.

Again, Mike was there to save Bella from Edward.  _ Does he know that we both could kill him in less than two seconds? I mean obviously not but he could act as if he did. _

The school day ended and Edward was sarcastically ready for the next one.

Edward still wanted to figure Bella out as if she were an impossible math problem that needed solving. She wasn’t a math problem and she didn’t need to be solved, but Edward couldn’t believe that. A few nights ago he watched her from a tree that perfectly showed the view of her bedroom window. Without her talking to get in the way of it he saw the real beauty that she had. If that was the only way to truly know her, he would gladly do it again. 

Climbing the tree wasn’t the difficult part of spying on a person. The difficult part of spying on a person was making sure there was no way to be caught. You would have to know their schedule. Thankfully, Edward knew that Bella went out at night for a snack. He would find out that she had a friendship with a wolf. Most of the time he would go back home and report what he found out about Bella if there was anything new to report. Usually, she would hunt, come home, do homework, and aimlessly scroll on her smartphone. It was a standard schedule.

Of course, Mike had to visit Bella that night, throwing her schedule a little bit off.  _ This human is going to fall in love with Bella and she will have to tell him why it’s a bad idea and then she’ll have to move away which will make us have to move away and someone is going to have to kill Mike because he’ll know too much and there is no way he will be able to keep quiet about vampires. _ Edward’s thoughts were spiraling too much to notice that Mike’s visit lasted about 5 minutes.  _ No one falls in love in 5 minutes _ . 

The next day in school was great until Rosalie had the grand idea to play a prank on Bella in the parking lot after school. Naturally, Edward had to execute the plan because Bella thinks the rest of his siblings are mute and he likes letting her think that. The prank didn’t last as long as the Cullens had hoped because Bella was too clever. The games ended, though, when Bella’s annoying attachment met her at her car.

Edward didn’t care what Mike wanted with Bella, so once his siblings accumulated into the car he drove off. 

He went home to write about how Bella made him feel in his journal until it was time to spy on her again.  _ If it were stalking, then I would follow her at every minute of the day. I don’t stalk her. _ Edward was only clarifying his thoughts for himself, to make the situation better even though he knew what he was doing was borderline stalking.  _ It is easier to like her when she isn’t talking. It’s not like I’m sneaking into her house through her window to watch her, I’m more polite than that. _

Her schedule kept constant until Friday. When Edward arrived at her house, her car was in the driveway but her body was not in her house. Although he can’t read her thoughts, he can sense if she was there or not. Disappointed that he might have missed her, he was ready to leave until he heard her come home in a different direction than normal.  _ Maybe she just went a different way home while hunting. _ That was the theory Edward planned on going with until he saw her face in thought not too far away. Concentrating more, he figured out that it was the wolf she was friends with. 

Then Saturday rolled around. Edward didn’t know what to do with his time without school interrupting him from getting to know Bella.  _ Maybe my siblings have an idea _ .

“What is everyone’s plan for today?” he asked from his bedroom, waiting for everyone’s thoughts to roll in. 

“Emmett and I were going to run to the border to see what we could catch,” Jasper’s thought buzzed in his ears first and he didn’t need anyone else’s to be able to already agree with their idea.

“Sounds like fun. May I join?” Edward said back before he could decide on anyone else’s plans. 

“Yes, we are getting ready now,” Emmett said back. 

It was 6 am when they left the house. They raced to Clallam Bay which took less than 10 minutes to get to. Edward won. Their final Destination was Classet and Edward wanted to race there, too. Edward was the fastest Cullen so racing him wasn’t fair to Emmett and Jasper, but they did it anyway.

Edward, Jasper, and Emmett made it to Classet before 7 am. There weren’t many animals to choose from this far north, but  [ the sunrise on Cape Flattery ](http://www.stephenpenland.com/photo/cape-flattery-2/) made the journey worth it. The fog mixed with the  [ teal color of the water ](https://photorator.com/photo/96361/cape-flattery-washington-) and the pink of the sunrise was one of the things Edward would remember for the rest of his forever. 

_ This sunrise is something else this morning. Being one of the few groups of vampires who settle down we know how to stop and take in every moment, to feel normal. Vampires don’t usually soak up the sun in front of humans but when they get the chance to do it without them around it can be relaxing. I like to soak up the sun any chance I get. I like the tingling feeling I get in my fingertips, remembering how the sun used to feel. _

“I wonder what Edward is doing over there,” Emmett’s mention of Edward’s name in his thoughts brought him back to reality. 

“I was enjoying the sun, Emmett,” Edward said. 

“Well me and Jasper are going to look for something to eat if you’re done enjoying the sun and want to join us,” Emmett said out loud. 

Edward decided to join them. He followed behind them not caring about speed now. 

“Edward needs to calm down,” Jasper’s thoughts said.

“Jasper, what do I need to calm down about?”

“Your reaction to Bella. Why can’t you just believe Alice’s visions? She has all of us in her best interest. I'm positive that Alice wouldn’t lie to you,” Jasper said out loud.

_ He had a point. Bella doesn’t know about our powers and she wouldn’t know that acting impulsively could alter the visions Alice has.  _

“Say for a moment that Bella was here for good intentions,” Edward started. “Why did she choose Forks of all places? It’s small, there are about two things to do there, three if you count the one we can’t do, and it’s quiet. A vampire of her caliber would hate the smallness and quietness. There has to be a hidden motive in her good actions.”

“Edward, she hasn’t given any reason to show that she has hidden intentions in real life or Alice’s visions. Just stop thinking about her,” Jasper said.  _ They obviously haven’t seen her in biology class. _

“Ed’s only doing it ‘cause he likes her,” Emmett chimed in.

“I like her?” Edward was stunned at the thought.

“Of course you do. It’s all laid out right there,” Emmett started. “She’s stronger than any other vampire you have met, she makes you angry in the right, yet annoying ways, and not to mention you watch her every night.”

Jasper and Edward shared the same surprised look at Emmett. 

_ It was a possibility that I could like Bella. _

They continued hunting. Eventually, they found something to eat and the hunt was successful. They made the hike back to Forks in silence, besides Edward listening to Jasper and Emmett’s shared thought of Edward liking Bella.

When they got back home it was later than Edward realized, they had spent the whole day hunting in Cape Flattery. It was time to check in on Bella.

“There he goes, checking up on his girl,” Emmett thought mockingly as Edward ran into the forest.  _ Hopefully, I get there and Bella hasn’t started her nightly routine yet. _

Edward climbed into his regular spot in the trees when he noticed Bella walking around, he watched her as she noticed him. Her head tilted in confusion.

“What are you doing up there?” she asked when she was close enough. 

“I’m hanging in a tree,” he said brushing it off as if he didn’t get caught. 

“Come down here,” Bella insisted.

“No, I don’t think I will. The sunset is great from up here,” Edward said.  _ What am I saying? The sun hasn’t been in the sky for a couple of hours now. _

Bella wondered again what Edward was doing in the tree but he didn’t answer. He froze as if he were a statue, the only way that anyone would know he was still there was if they were looking at him. She climbed up into the tree when she realized he wasn’t going to answer her question.

“Answer my question, seriously no jokes or sarcasm, and I’ll answer yours,” Edward said after minutes of them staring at each other. 

“Deal,” Bella said reaching out her hand. Edward took it and shook it, lingering his hand for two seconds too long to be normal.

And it was a deal. Bella answered all of Edward’s questions truthfully and without sarcasm. They went back and forth for almost an hour. Edward learned so much about Bella and Bella learned so much about Edward and his family. At the end of the conversation, Bella agreed to officially meet his family and Edward knew that Emmett was right about him liking Bella.

When he picked her up the next day for the introduction, seeing her only confirmed that he was feeling something for Bella. He didn’t know how it happened so fast but he now realized his anger toward her blossomed from other feelings. Even though it had only been about a week of knowing her, he was consumed by everything she was. There was no way Edward would let anything happen to Bella now. Even though she could most likely hold her own. 

Bella walked into his house and started telling about herself, a version of what Edward had heard just the night before. 

By the end of her story, Edward had gathered the thoughts of his family. 

“This girl is perfect for Edward. I’m glad she decided to change for the better. I could get used to having her around here,” Esme thought.

“She probably has a lot of stories to tell. I wonder if we ever ran with the same people. I am happy that she decided to stick with the vegetarian diet. It will be good for her,” Carlisle thought.

“Bear fighting with her will no doubt be the best thing ever. I can’t wait to take her hunting,” Emmett thought.

“I wonder what it’s like being friends with a wolf. It can’t smell too good but to each her own,” Rosalie thought.

“I know we’re going to be best friends,” Alice thought along with a vision Alice had of her and Bella doing stuff together.

“How does that girl do it? I need to take notes on how she is coping with this new diet. She seems to be taking it so well,” Jasper thought. 

Of course, Edward shared what they were thinking with Bella, leaving out some details that were better kept in their brains. Much like his opinion about her.

“And you?” Bella asked after he shared what his family was thinking about her. Edward chuckled as his answer.

_ How could I tell her what I think about her? How could I tell her that she makes me feel like the sun is coursing through my body? She makes me, a vampire who has not lived a day since 1918, feel warm inside. How could I tell her that I think that she is the perfect kind of annoying? How could I tell her that not being able to read her thoughts makes me want to know them more? How could I tell her these things knowing that I’ve only known her for a short time? Every minute spent with her feels like a year, though. There is no way to tell her this. _

To change the subject, she asked about everyone else’s powers. 

“What are everyone else’s powers?”

“Well, it’s just Alice, Jasper, and me. You know mine. Alice sees the future and Jasper manipulate moods. Most of the time he’s just calming everyone down. Maybe you noticed that your nerves calmed down after you got settled, that was him.”

“And do I work for them?”

“Sort of an abnormal way to ask that kind of question, but yes. Jasper had no difficulties easing your nerves tonight. Alice has seen you in her visions before so again it’s just me,” Edward explained.

The rest of the night Bella hung around the house and Edward was right there with her. He showed her around the giant house. The rooms were fully decorated, which was unlikely for a house full of vampires. Edward enjoyed the time he was spending with Bella and was somber about the evening ending, but all good things have to end.

“Are you ready to go home?” Edward asked. 

“Your family is so fun, how could I leave them?” Bella said sarcastically but with obvious truth to it.

“You are more than welcome to come over any time,” Edward said, directing Bella toward the front door.

“I might have to take you up on that offer,” Bella said. 

The ride home was filled with a comfortable silence. The ride took all of two minutes, but with Bella at his side, it felt like more. The night officially ended when Edward gave a peck on Bella’s cheek and left her to think about what it meant.

_ It was kind of rude of me to do that but I needed to shake things up. In a way I want it to mean more but for now, I’m fine with her thinking it was just something friendly. _

Edward composed himself the next day in school enough until biology class came and he could have a conversation without a sibling interfering. 

“So, you’re against renting limousines now?” Edward asked after he arrived at the class. He had overheard their conversation at Bella’s lunch table.

“I wouldn’t say against. I don’t have much knowledge on homecomings, I didn’t attend high school a million times, but everything I have gathered didn’t mention any limos.”

“You’re still going to the dance with him?” When Edward found out Bella was going to the homecoming dance with Mike he was disappointed that he wasn’t able to ask her first.  _ I know that sharing that dance would solidify our relationship. Now she’s going with that marshmallow and I have to be okay with it. _

“Yes, Edward. Why would I take it back?”

“I was hoping our connection might have changed your mind,” Edward said. Although the peck on the cheek was supposed to mean nothing to Bella, it meant a lot to Edward. He was hoping that it changed things even though it meant something to both pirates involved.  _ That’s the issue with not being able to read her thoughts. I would be able to know how she feels and this would be less agonizing _ . 

“I don’t think I had enough time, between last night and today at school, to ponder our connection to be able to decline Mike for homecoming,” Bella said snarkily. 

“Homecoming isn’t for another two weeks so I think I have time to convince you otherwise,” Edward said.

“Why are you so against me going with him to a silly dance?”

“Bella, honestly I’m surprised you don’t see it yourself. He is such a marshmallow.”  _ I’m surprised that she can’t see how much better I am than he is. _

The rest of the class didn’t matter. Edward has learned this lesson hundreds of times. He could teach it better than Mr. Banner. He began to get angry at the thought that crept into his head.  _ What if Bella doesn’t like me as I like her? _ He wondered and stared at her for a strange amount of time. It was like she was the only thing he could look at after his thought. 

He wanted her to like him but he didn’t want to force it. There had to be a way for her to feel that same warmth that she brought. Maybe he could set her world on fire and she would understand.

“What would you have said if I asked you to the dance?” Edward asked when class was over.

“That would depend on your timing. If you are trying to ask me now, I obviously would have to say no. If you would have asked me earlier, maybe I would have said yes.”

“So I missed my chance?”

“Perhaps you did,” Bella said. 

They made it to the Spanish classroom now. 

“Just promise you’ll save me a dance, then,” Edward said, letting Bella in the room before him. 

“I suppose I could arrange that.”

She agreed to dance so Edward had to make sure it was the best dance of the evening, maybe the best dance of her life. He didn’t need to practice. He’d known how to waltz since he was 11. Back then, dancing was a way to impress people and he was using those traditions for Bella. They were, after all, from the same era. It could work. 

The rest of the week didn’t matter too much to Edward. He wanted to get that dance with Bella more than anything. Naturally, being excited about something slowed down the time to get to the thing. The week dragged on for Edward. He didn’t want to make Bella angry so he made boring conversation with her. He asked if she knew the chief of police in Forks because they had the same last name. It wasn’t his favorite conversation but he did learn a little bit more about Bella and her past. 

It took almost everything he had in him to not drive over to Seattle when he found out Bella would be there with Jessica, Angela, and Lauren.  _ She needs time alone. This will be good for her. _ Although since he stayed in Forks, every thought he had was about her and if she was making it through the day okay. 

However, he didn’t want to miss out on his nightly Bella check-up. He hoped that she would be back when he went to her house. If she wasn’t he would’ve waited but he was in luck because once he arrived he saw Bella perched in his tree.

After talking for a minute about her afterparty Bella changed the subject.

“Why do you come around here every night?” she asked.

“You know why,” Edward said, hoping she didn’t guess his true intentions.

“Yes, you said that you want to keep an eye on me or whatever, but I’m not a danger to anyone and your sister can pretty much keep that under control.”

“I think I like knowing for myself, instead of relying on my sister to tell me what is going on in here,” Edward said with a touch on Bella’s head.

“When I went over your house last weekend, why didn’t you tell me how you feel about me?”

“Some thoughts are best kept to yourself,” Edward said.

“Says the vampire who can read thoughts,” Bella said rolling her eyes.

Edward knew his power wasn’t fair. A lot of the time it felt like he was intruding on some special moments. He couldn’t quite control when and who he heard, but if he heard something personal he kept it to himself. When there is a gift exchange, for example, Edward doesn’t spill what everyone is getting. Some things  _ are _ left unsaid, within reason.

Talking about Bella’s future strengthened everything he was feeling. He could see himself right beside her figuring out whatever she wanted to do.  _ If she wanted to go back to being nomadic, I would travel the world with her, of course with the vegetarian diet. If she wanted to settle down with my family, I was ready for that, too. A couple of weeks and I am ready for forever with her. It is crazy to think that was all it took. It might be too fast, but when you have forever to go time becomes obsolete.  _

At the end of the conversation, he wondered if the tree was their only sacred place. Every conversation outside of the trees had problems or issues attached to them. 

The next week dragged. Edward couldn’t stop thinking about the dance. He desperately wanted that dance so he played the moment over and over in his head. Alice has seen the same outcome over 50 times with different dances and songs playing. It was better than his ever-constant complaining about Mike, though. 

However, he was going to have to wait until Saturday for his desperation to end. 

Monday came and if there was any chance of avoiding Bella for the day, it was a bad idea. Everyone was thinking about her. The only people not worried about Bella were the teachers at the school. Every person Edward passed had thought of Bella and where she lived or if they were invited to the party, too. Luckily, Edward didn’t have to worry if he was invited; he knew where he stood about that party. Since everyone was discussing Bella, Edward knew he wouldn’t be able to not think about her either. 

He decided that he would invite her to have lunch with her. He had to sit at a different table because he knew the noise would be too much for Bella to be able to hear him across the room. He also wanted something to drown out his family listening to him.

“Seems like you are yet again another hot topic of conversation for this school,” Edward said in the cafeteria. Bella searched for where the noise came from. When she looked behind her, they locked eyes.

“Yeah, I suppose I am,” Bella whispered back.

“Come join me for lunch today,” Edward said. He figured that giving her the choice would be risky. Asking her to join was one thing but telling her to join was another.

“I’m sorry guys,” Bella said standing up. “I was just invited to lunch over there,” she said pointing her head in Edward’s direction. 

“When did  _ he _ invite her over there?” Mike’s thoughts were the most annoyed.

“You know, you have given them a lot to think about with that sentence. They’re all wondering how you were invited if I never asked you,” Edward said once Bella sat down at the table. 

“They’ll figure something out.”

Their lunch conversation was personal. But again it came with problems and issues because they weren’t in the tree. Edward tried one last time to get her to ditch Mike but it failed. It made her angrier and she banned Mike as a topic until Saturday. 

Though conversations out of the tree end differently than Edward would hope, those conversations aren’t negligible. He can tell that Bella is enjoying herself more around him. He can’t read her mind but he is beginning to be able to read her. He can tell she is enjoying her time with him as he is with her. 

School on Monday finished and Edward was left unsatisfied about how he left things with Bella at lunch. Even though their conversation in biology moved past it, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he pushed her too far. That fear was verified when one of Alice’s visions popped into his head that had Emmett and Bella hunting bears in the mountains. 

When they came back Esme invited her to stay awhile and immediately Edward got a lot of the trip through Emmett’s thoughts. 

“I went hunting with Emmett today,” Bella said once they settled on the seemingly useless couch.

“So I’ve heard,” Edward said with a smile on his face.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I’m not allowed to say until Saturday is over but if you ask again then I’ll be sure to tell you.” _Ironically, Bella can come to my family in a time of need and be excited to tell me about it and not tell Mike about it._ _Admittedly this is not a fair thought to have. What is she going to do? Tell him about vampires and then relieve her stress on him? That’s not fair._

As the week went on Edward needed new distractions to get through what might’ve been his longest week ever. He paid more attention to Bella than anything. He noticed that when she was concentrating in class she would tuck her hair behind her left ear before writing something down. He noticed that she didn’t make it visible that she was breathing as his family did. He noticed that her eyes lost their amber color slower than Jasper’s did. He noticed that eating human food didn’t bother her as much as it did other vampires. He noticed that when she was reading a book in her room at night that she dog eared pages she wanted to go back to. He noticed that she wore the color blue more than any other color. He noticed that the more time she spent around humans the more mannerisms she caught from them. He noticed that she had headphones and listened to music. He noticed that she began watching television in her free time since she finished all of her school work. He noticed that she missed her wolf friend. He noticed her smell and by knowing what that was he knew the absence of it, too. He noticed more about her than she knew about herself.

He had a lot of time that week. 

Then it was Saturday and everyone in the Cullen household was happy for Edward. He would get his dance and he wouldn’t have to mention it or sulk about it ever again. 

During an upbeat song, Edward heard the DJ’s thoughts so he knew a slow song was coming on next. He couldn’t take his eyes off of Bella since she entered the gym so he knew where she was. He walked up to her, interrupting the bouncing she, Jessica, and Angela were doing to Bon Jovi’s Livin’ on a Prayer. 

“You are breathtaking,” Edward said, bending to whisper it in her ear with a hand on her lower back. Jessica and Angela were surprised that he seemingly came out of nowhere. “The next song is ours,” he said and walked away. The next four minutes were up there as the slowest time to ever pass for Edward, even compared to the week he just had.

Seconds before the song finished, Edward pulled Bella away from Jessica and Angela. He put his left hand in the center of Bella’s back and with his right hand, he delicately held hers. The intro played and they began dancing. 

Edward didn’t recognize  [ the song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtp72RnFaRU) that was playing, but he knew he would need to listen to it every day after this dance to reminisce. They didn’t say a word to each other during the whole dance, taking in the emotions that this moment created. If Edward had a heartbeat, Bella would be able to hear his speed up. The song carried on and they were immersed in each other, not caring about all of the people suddenly watching their waltz through the gymnasium floor. As the song ended, Edward was disappointed it wasn’t longer. He took a moment to gather what everyone thought of their dance and they thought it was beautiful and surprised that they both knew how to dance like that.

“You amaze me,” Edward said and left to be with his siblings leaving no time for Bella to say anything to him.

Edward watched Bella for the rest of the night. It was hard to watch Bella share a moment with Mike after they shared their own. Especially when Edward knew what Mike was thinking the whole time.

At the afterparty, Edward avoided Bella. He wanted to talk to her about the dance they shared but he knew he would not be able to contain his feelings.  _ I can just avoid her until midnight and tell her that if Mike were to come up I didn’t want to avoid the topic. That’s rude of me, I know, but I want to seem collected when I talk to her. That is not me right now. _

He watched her from a distance at the party, if she ever came in her direction he would just move. He was unattainable at that party and it angered Bella. She asked his siblings about him the whole night. Each sibling not giving her the answer she wanted angered her more. 

Finally, it was midnight.

“I have been looking for you all night, where have you been?” Bella asked.

“I was waiting for midnight so no conversation would be off-limits,” he responded. 

“Are you kidding me? You waited all night so that you could talk to me about Mike,” Bella said, putting her hands on her forehead. 

“No, I prefer not to talk about him but if the topic came up I wouldn’t have to avoid it,” Edward said they were sitting on his couch now.

“That was some performance you put on with that dance.”

“I would say the same thing about you. Who knew you could waltz?”

“For the record, I knew that I could.”

“Where does the Isabella Swan learn how to waltz?”

“It was when I was gallivanting around Europe. I’ve been to my fair share of fancy gatherings.”

“Every time I learn something new about you I,” Edward stopped in the middle of his sentence, his eyebrows pulling together.

“You what?”

“It might be inappropriate.”

“Say it,” Bella encouraged with a nod.

“Every time I learn something new about you I,” Edward started again, hesitating. “I like you so much more than the minute before when I didn’t know it.”

Before he could contradict his thoughts, he moved closer to Bella and kissed her on the lips. 

_ That kiss left me speechless and thoughtless. I don’t know what life was like before I knew what kissing her was. I can feel the warmth shooting through my body even though that isn’t possible. I know what my forever is worth now. _

“Wow,” Edward managed to whisper afterward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this was the worst of me to leave the last chapter on a cliffhanger and start this chapter in the past then leave it on another cliffhanger but I really liked writing the Boys Trip to northern Washington. I hope you clicked on the links for those pictures, that place is absolutely stunning. I also liked how during homecoming week Edward and Bella had contrasting weeks; Edward's was unbearably slow and Bella's was fast. I hope you like this chapter!!!!!!!!


	12. part 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back to Bella's Point of View

Bella POV!!!!

“Wow,” Bella whispered at the same time as Edward. 

Though Bella didn’t know  [ the song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6WNdcZpDhQ) playing through the speakers, the lyrics spoke to her almost directly.

_ Of course, I liked the kiss. I don’t want to think about how it complicates things. It was like breathing, something that came naturally. Now that I have kissed him, I don’t know what it’s like not kissing him. I know what forever means now even if it is complicated. _

Bella didn’t know what to say to him. She ran, faster than a human but slower than a vampire, to her room. She needed at least a minute to compose herself before she confronted anything. 

_ How did I let anything get this far?  _ It wasn’t that she let someone have feelings for her; it was that she wasn’t expecting it to happen, let alone reciprocating the feelings.

She counted every second that passed while the remains of the people left at the party decided to go home. 432 seconds had passed when someone knocked on the door. 

“Bella?” Angela asked from the other side of the door. “We were all about to head out and wanted to know if you needed help cleaning up.”

Bella didn’t have the heart to see Edward yet but she knew she needed to tell someone about what happened.  _ Crap, no. Edward will read her mind anyway. Ugh, I hate that power there is absolutely no privacy whatsoever. _

“No, thank you, Angela. I can handle everything,” Bella said in a monotone. She didn’t want to shut her new friends out but she had no choice with Edward’s invasive power. She heard Angela walk back down the steps and started counting the seconds again.

It was hard to tell if Edward was still hanging around her house because he could move ever so silently. 286 seconds after Angela checked in on Bella, she decided to go across the hall and look out the window to see if she could see Edward. 

The room across the hall was the master bedroom of the house. Bella knew that if she ever had people over she had to make sure people thought the master bedroom was used by her mother so she left it unoccupied but furnished. The window overlooked the front yard and she would be able to look down at all of the furniture on the front lawn. 

Although when she got to the window, she didn’t see any furniture at all. She knew that her group didn’t move it because they would’ve made too much noise for Bella to ignore. She wanted to go investigate but the thought of confronting Edward froze her in her tracks. She stayed in that room for a while before deciding to lay on the bed and count the seconds again.

She lost count of the seconds after 10,000 but she knew that Edward couldn’t have possibly stayed at her house for 3 hours doing nothing. She went to investigate her furniture. 

She didn’t have to go far because she could see all the furniture, even the couch and speaker the Cullens let her borrow, spread across her first floor. On the kitchen table was a note from Edward.

_ Dearest Bella, _

_ I want to apologize for the trouble I have caused by kissing you tonight. I would like to make a formal apology but I know that you might not be ready to see me yet. First of all, I definitely should have asked you. Secondly, I should not have put you in a position where you would have felt the need to run away from me. Again I apologize for kissing you. It was impulsive and stupid of me to think that it was what you wanted.  _

_ I have brought in all of the furniture because there is rain in the forecast tonight and I wouldn’t want it to be ruined. My family had left me without a car so I hope you don’t mind my things staying the night here, too. I will be back around 8 in the morning to pick everything up. Most importantly I would like to see you and talk things over but I understand if that is too early for you.  _

_ Sincerest apologies, _

_ Edward Anthony Masen Cullen _

The note was written in a distinctive script that Bella hadn’t seen Edward use in school noting the formality of the letter. She also noticed that he signed it with his full name at the bottom of it.  _ He was one for the dramatics. _ She kept the note for no other reason than to be able to look at his full name in signature when she wanted to. 

For the next couple of hours, before Edward would arrive, Bella debated whether she was going to confront him or not. Most of the time she landed on no out of her own selfish reasons of not wanting to deal with the feelings she was having as well. 

She didn’t have much more time to think when Edward arrived at 8 am on the dot, pulling Bella out of her thoughts as she realized the time had gotten away from her.  _ I guess I have to make a rash decision now. _

Without thinking she walked down the stairs six minutes later, knowing she left the door open for him and knowing that he would have been done at that time. Luckily for her, he stuck around for a couple of minutes anyway.

“Listen, Bella,” he started before her feet reached the final step. “I want to apologize. It was a really stupid thing for me to do. If anything I should have asked you before it happened. I wasn’t thinking at all about it. I am so deeply sorry.” The words were tumbling out of his mouth, not out of insincerity but because he wanted to make sure he said everything he needed to say.

“Don’t be,” Bella said before she could think of anything else to reply.  _ Why did I say  _ that _? Saying nothing would have been better _ . 

“No, I need to be sorry. I really should not have kissed you without your consent. On my part that was stupid. I let my feelings take over me and at that moment I felt like there was nothing else I could do.”

“Yes, that is what you should be sorry for but don’t apologize that it happened,” Bella said. She was still standing at the foot of the stairs and Edward was at the other end of the living room. This distance could be awkward to many people but it was working for them. 

“You liked it?” He was surprised her reaction didn’t give him much confidence.

“Yes,” Bella replied.

“Please Bella, you have to tell me what you are thinking. Everyone is so easy and with you there is nothing.”

Bella hadn’t been spending any time trying to drop her shield, so she didn’t know if this would work but she tried exceptionally hard to let Edward in. She focused on what she wanted Edward to know and focused on getting it to him. Her face locked in concentration.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I was trying to let you into my thoughts,” Bella said, finally making her way toward him.

“I don’t think you’ll just be able to do it,” he said smiling.

Bella made it to him and grabbed his hand. “Let me try something else.” She delicately held his hand, closed her eyes, and focused on her thoughts.  _ Edward, I don’t know what I’m doing here but if you can read my thoughts say something. _

“Bella, how did you do that?”

“You heard me? I concentrated on my thoughts and just wanted you to know them. Maybe being closer to you helped a little bit, too.” Bella stood next to Edward holding his hand. She thought about the kiss they shared last night and the rest of her thoughts scrambled into Edward’s head.  _ I liked the kiss, of course, but I don’t want it to complicate things. Feelings make things complicated. Although, if feelings were negligible I wouldn’t mind kissing him again. Maybe liking him wouldn’t be such a bad thing. Maybe feelings wouldn’t be bad at all either. Maybe feelings for him wouldn’t be as bad as I think it is. _ Bella stopped in her tracks, knowing that her thoughts had gone too far and she couldn’t take them back.

“That was a lot for both of us,” Edward said. “Are your thoughts always this scattered?”

“Usually. I bet you are glad you aren’t up there all of the time,” Bella replied, getting a chuckle out of Edward. 

“I’m honored that I get to finally know some of your thoughts,” Edward started. “I look forward to getting another moment like this, but in the meantime, you can tell me what you’re thinking.”

They stood there taking each other in for a moment before Edward bent down and pressed his lips to Bella’s head.

“I have to be on my way now,” Edward said. Bella looked up at him confused, their faces inches from each other. “This week looks like it’s going to be the last week of good, sunny weather so we are going camping this time. Family bonding,” Edward said with a laugh. “You can come if you would like to,” Edward said before Bella could even wonder if she was invited.

“I’m thankful for the invitation but I think I’ll decline. I don’t think spending an indefinite amount of time with your family is the best way to start this,” Bella said, gesturing between the two of them.

“This,” Edward laughed out. “It was just a kiss Bella, you don’t have to go planning our future because of it,” Edward said. He was lingering because he didn’t want to leave Bella for what looked like an upwards of three days. “Maybe I’ll leave early then,” Edward said leaving Bella with another kiss on her head.

_ I could get used to this. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, the sun rose with vindication and didn’t leave until it set later that night. Bella knew it was a good idea to skip school that day because of the warning Edward gave the day before. She stayed home and didn’t know what to do. She thought about how it was going to look to her group when she didn’t show up to homeroom and Edward wasn’t in school either. After the events played out Saturday night she knew rumors would be flying about where they were and every single rumor had them placed together.

Although she knew everyone was wondering about her whereabouts, Angela was the only one to reach out and see if maybe the rumors weren’t true, not for the drama out of genuine concern.

“Hey, Bella!” Angela’s text started. “I noticed you weren’t in school today. I hope you’re feeling okay. Did you want me to drop off any assignments?”

Bella assumed that her classmates would try to reach out to her, especially Mike, but as the day went on Angela was the only one to reach out.

“I think I have come down with something. I’m not too sure what it is. Hopefully, I can kick it soon,” Bella responded. “It would help a lot if you could drop off my assignments, too. Just leave it at the door. I don’t want to infect you.”

Bella knew that lying was for the sake of the humans but she has grown to like these people and lying to them never felt right. It also didn’t help that Bella was a great liar. 

Bella thought back to when she was young. Her human memories are like a movie she watched a couple of weeks ago, trying to grasp on to what remains of the plot. She still remembered significant things, though. She usually thought about her mother, the most significant part of her memory. Today, she had a memory of her mother’s friend, Margaret. 

Margaret was much older than her mother and that was shown by the grey in her hair and the wrinkles that lined her skin like lakes on a map. She was kind and took care of Bella when she was too young to work with her mom. Although it had been Bella and her mom, a tag team, Margaret couldn’t be counted out. 

Bella’s human memories are so minuscule now, though, that Margaret doesn’t feel like a memory anymore. Bella has to think hard each time she remembers Margaret because it felt more like a story she was trying to tell herself rather than a memory. The only reason that she knew Margaret was real was that she had a portrait of her in a necklace her mother always wore. After Bella learned of her mother’s passing, she went back home and gave her a proper burial. She didn’t stay long after that, knowing it was inevitable, took that necklace along with some other things, and never looked back. Bella has since removed the picture Bella’s mother had of Bella on the opposite side of Margaret and replaced it with her mother. 

Bella’s mother never talked about her family because she always had the family she needed right with her and that was enough for her.

Bella was brought back to reality by the sound of Angela ringing the doorbell and running away. 

“Your work is on your porch,” Angela’s text rang on Bella’s phone.

“Thank you so much, Angela,” Bella texted back.

She knew that the classes would pick up after homecoming, she studied the syllabi after all. However, she didn’t grasp that it would be immediate. She looked at the pile of papers under a new book for English class.  _ The Merchant of Venice _ and a question packet for the first half of the book sat there along with a government essay assignment, a biology lab about blood type, and a Spanish assignment.  _ Lucky me. I skipped the perfect day in biology class.  _

Bella read over the essay for the government class.  _ This assignment wasn’t in the syllabus. _ She didn’t quite understand the assignment but she knew she would be able to tackle it. “Write your Declaration of Independence. Imagine your body as its own country. Imagine that was taken by some other country. How would you declare your independence from someone else?”  _ Sometimes I think teachers give assignments just as an excuse to keep students busy during class. _

She sits down at her desk ready to write about her independence. She writes about how she is her own person and already pretty independent.  _ I came to a small town and decided to change my whole life around _ . Although writing that may seem a little vague for Mrs. Jefferson didn't change it.  _ I have found a way to exist in an area where I didn’t think was possible.  _

She wrote about how being alone and doing everything by herself made her independent. As she wrote from this perspective she thought about how she wasn’t alone.  _ I have my friends. I have Jessica, Angela, Mike, Eric, Lauren, and Tyler. Our friendship isn’t the sturdiest of relationships but I like them the same. I also have Jake. Even though existing together is complicated I consider our friendship good. I even have the Cullens. Whatever our relationship is I know I can count on that whole family even though they barely know me. _ As she thought about everyone she decided that independence wasn’t about being alone. It was about creating an environment that made it okay to exist together. She could be independent and still rely on the Cullens, Jake, or her friends if she was having a bad day. 

She completed her Declaration of Independence assignment and was feeling refreshed. She had been thinking about what kissing Edward had meant and how in a few weeks her whole life had flipped upside down. She was worried that not being the once dangerous vampire was giving her an identity crisis. 

Bella started reading  _ The Merchant of Venice _ when she decided to go for a drink. Although it looked like she wouldn’t be going to school again tomorrow, she wanted to keep her mood up. 

She went off to hunt. She didn’t have any objectives for this hunt. It was pretty meaningless to her. She went for a deer and a couple of squirrels. When she heard a howl in the distance, she remembered that she hadn’t seen Jacob in awhile. 

She ran to their spot in the forest just in time to see him before he ran off.

“I know this isn’t the ideal way to communicate but I’m sorry that I haven’t been around lately,” she told him. She hoped everything was okay when he didn’t do anything to acknowledge that he heard her. “Maybe we can meet at the line tomorrow morning or something. The weather is supposed to be nice and sunny so I can’t go to school. Maybe we can talk then. I’ll be at the line at 9 if you don’t show by 10 I’ll leave. I don’t know what your school schedule is like but I hope that works out for you.” He still didn’t show any signs of hearing her but hopefully, he’ll show the next day.

When she got back to her house she could feel that something was off, she couldn’t place what it was. When she entered her house from the back door she was met face to face with Edward. 

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“I don’t want to sound needy but I didn’t want to spend tomorrow without you.”

“That really sucks for you because I just made plans,” Bella said. She couldn’t stop smiling though, Edward was a pleasant surprise. 

“With the wolf?” Edward asked, noticing Bella’s confused look. “I can smell it on you.”

“I barely notice it anymore,” she said, more to herself but Edward heard it anyway. 

“Are you sure about this?” Bella knew he was referencing her relationship with Jacob in general.

“I haven’t been this sure about someone in so long. He is a great guy and he is going through something as well. He needs friends, everyone does.”

“Why does it have to be you?”

“I can’t explain it again. You know we are connected,” Bella said and Edward left it at that.

“Will I be able to see you tomorrow, though?”

“Yeah Edward, he won’t be holding me captive. I’ll stop by your place when I’m done.”

“Well, can we have tonight?”

“Yes, we can have tonight.” 

They moved to Bella’s room. She showed him the room across the hall that was fully decorated as her mother’s room and he laughed when he noticed the size difference. 

“Surely you could’ve taken the bigger room,” Edward said.

“Of course I could’ve but what would everyone have said when they noticed that my room was the bigger one,” Bella replied.

“That your mom is generous enough to let you have a bigger room. You’ve already made it clear that she isn’t around a lot, she could’ve given it to you because of that.”

“It just makes more sense that my fictional mother has a bigger room.”

They went to Bella’s room and sat on her bed and talked about everything and nothing. Bella told Edward another nomad story, one with the least amount of killing, and Edward told Bella about his family. They talked until the sun started creeping above the horizon.

“I suppose I should be getting on my way now,” Edward said with disdain. 

“Don’t worry Edward, I’ll see you later,” Bella said, kissing him on the cheek and that was enough for him to think about for hours. 

When Bella arrived at the spot she told Jacob to meet at, he was already waiting for her.

“It’s much easier to find you when you give an exact time and place,” Jacob said, waiting for her to reach him.

“I hope this isn’t interfering with your school, I don’t know what your schedule is like.”

“It’s fine. I usually go to school on the reservation but ever since I changed, I kind of choose when I go. Why aren’t you in school today?”

Bella wondered how he knew she was attending school, she didn’t remember telling him that. “I try to avoid people when the sun is out,” Bella said looking up through the trees at the hovering, bright sun in the sky.

One shift and Bella’s skin would be exposed, leaving the shade from the trees behind, and Jacob would see what Bella truly looks like. 

“Why do you do that?” Jacob was curious about most things and being friends with a vampire spiked his curiosity. He had forever access to a wealth of knowledge on something that he knew nothing about. It was like he had his own Google for one specific topic. Since they were “sworn enemies” he knew nothing about her kind and it all fascinated him. 

“Well, being in the sun exposes us to humans,” Bella searched for the words to explain a great deal of vampire history to a young wolf. She didn’t have to explain, though. All she needed to do was shift her weight to her left leg instead of her right and he would know. So, she did that. 

“Wow,” was all Jake managed to say before he reached his hand out to touch Bella’s face. The contrast of their temperatures stung Bella’s face and Jake’s hand and he quickly pulled his hand away. “Sorry,” he said.

Bella never knew that she could have that kind of feeling in her. As a vampire, every feeling she had came from hunting and feeding, until recently.  _ Maybe Forks is changing me for the better. _

“It’s okay. I just wanted to check in on you, see how you’ve been holding up.”

“I’ve been good, actually,” he said and it was genuine. They were each standing on one side of the line, now, like a glass partition separated them from fully interacting. “I talked with Sam about wanting to be the Alpha and he told me it could happen. He said it would take time for everyone to transition to it but we’re working on it. Now when we run, I’m right by his side and he consults me before decisions are made. I like it. How has it been with you?”

“You should, it's your rightful place. I went to homecoming this weekend and it surprised me where my life is heading.”

“What do you mean?”

“How I used to be a very dangerous vampire, now I’m attending high school dances and getting flustered when someone kisses me. It’s all very out of body and I’m having a slight identity crisis.”

“Just think about why you wanted to do this in the first place,” Jake said, ignoring the part about the kiss.   
  


“I have given that thought but I realized that goal is unattainable. Not having that goal has given little meaning to being here.”

“What’s wrong with going back to your old life?” Jacob asked. “Obviously the killing was wrong but what else? If you find no meaning in continuing this life just go back.” He made solid points. 

“I guess the only thing holding me back would be the relationships I made here. I wasn’t expecting to be friends with anyone, especially humans or my ‘sworn enemy.’ These relationships I made are important. I don’t want to just leave them.”

“Stay for the relationships, then. I might be biased, but I would like it if you stayed a little longer to figure out where you want to go next.”

They talked longer than Bella thought they would have. He was easy to talk to and Bella needed that. She was easy to talk to and Jacob needed that. They complimented each other in ways that were more than physical. If Bella was cold then Jacob was warm. If Bella was night then Jacob was the day. If Bella was purple then Jacob was yellow. They fit together as two puzzle pieces should. This was the relationship Bella was most afraid to leave when the day came. 

Bella left Jacob feeling refreshed. She had a new journey to look forward to.

When Bella went to Edward’s house he seemed disappointed that she spent much more time with the wolf than he assumed. 

“What’s with the look on your face?” Bella asked, noticing his distaste.

“I thought you would be here sooner,” he was disappointed. 

“We never discussed how long I would be,” Bella said, annoyed that he didn’t like another relationship she had with a guy that wasn’t him. Bella knew that Edward worried about her, but he didn’t have to. Bella is a strong vampire and she can very well protect herself. 

“I was just worried.”

“You don’t have to be. Jake and I are friends, he won’t hurt me.” Edward knew that but it didn’t mean he would stop worrying about her.

They decided to go to Bella’s house to hang out, as the teens say. They had the rest of the day before his family would be back at night and he would have to see them. 

“What’s the most human thing you’ve enjoyed doing?” Edward asked out of the blue when they made it to her house.

“I quite like being in the moment,” Bella said, Edward looked confused by her answer. “When you’re a vampire everything happens at hyperspeed, taking a moment to enjoy where you are is something vampires rarely do. You should try it.”

It was an interesting topic for them to talk about. They had little memory of their human lives and what they did remember had to be thought about intensely. 

“What’s the most human thing you’ve done?” Bella asked.

Edward thought about his answer. It was easy to remember things he did as a human but, what human things did he do as a vampire? “I would have to say eating food,” it was the first thought that popped into his head and he couldn’t let it go. 

Bella thought about the most human thing to do and to her, that would be watching reality television shows, but the most human thing she has done was going to homecoming with the captain of the football team. In one swift movement, she grabbed Edward’s hand and dragged him to the couch that was placed in front of the television she bought in Seattle. “Let’s do something human together,” she said and put on reruns of some Bravo! reality TV show. 

“This is absurd,” Edward said seconds after the television was turned on.

“Watching television?” she knew the idea of this was wacky and unheard of but it helped her feel normal. 

“I think watching television, especially reality shows is a degrading human activity.” 

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing that you are a vampire,” Bella said and noticed that Edward was still unamused. “Edward, you were there when it was invented, the least you could do is pay Charles Francis Jenkins, Philo Farnsworth, and John Logie Baird some respect by indulging in these women who make their living off of their husband’s wealth.” 

Edward knew this would be a difficult conversation to win. “Fine,” he sighed and rolled his eyes. It was hard for him to argue when she said his name, losing him to his thoughts. 

They watched almost three hours of the show before Edward couldn’t stand it anymore. “These women are crazy. Did one of them just  [ take off a prosthetic leg and slam it on the table ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNUTRk0FR_s) ?”

“That’s the whole point of the show, Edward, you have to watch the crazy unfold.”

“I cannot continue to watch this. Maybe try something else?” Edward really wanted to do things Bella wanted to do but reality television was not going to happen.

“Maybe you’ll like a science fiction show,” Bella chuckled, going to Netflix and searching for  _ Black Mirror. _

That show wasn’t as bad for Edward but by the end, he was thoroughly disgusted. “I think we could benefit from a different activity.”

“Everyone says the show gets better though,” Bella offered. She couldn’t speak for herself on any of the shows she only recently got television and couldn’t stray away from the reality shows, copying human mannerisms to use for herself. 

“Maybe some other time,” he said looking at her. “My family should be arriving home soon. Would you like to accompany me?” He was standing with his hand out.

“Yes, I would enjoy that,” Bella said, taking his hand.

They began running to his house but Bella stopped mid-trip remembering that Edward needs to experience more moments. 

“What are you doing?” he asked running back to her.

“Let’s walk the rest of the way.”

“Have you gone crazy?”

“No, Edward, you just need to take a human moment once in a while,” she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him in the direction they were headed. The contact of their hands was different than any other interaction they had before. Somehow, this meant more than each kiss or peck they shared. Anything that was flowing through Bella didn’t stop at her hands, it continued into Edward’s and back. They were connected as if their hands had magnets in them. Edward began to feel that unexplainable warmth that she always brought and Bella felt that sense of completeness that Edward brought. 

They couldn’t keep their blissfulness for long though. When they got to his house his family had already arrived and the thoughts poured into his head. His eyebrows pulled together and his jaw clenched.

“What’s going on?” Bella asked, aware that someone’s thoughts interrupted their moment.

“Alice had a vision about a massive killing in town,” Edward said and looked at Bella with fear in his eyes and searching for hints of her upcoming rampage. Admittedly he had no reason to fear her, but seeing Alice’s vision made him think his initial thoughts of Bella were true. He didn’t want this all to be a lie.

“You think it’s me?” Bella asked backing away from him, scared that it could be her and that he would assume it. 

Before Edward could answer her or explain anything she was gone. She couldn’t go home because that would be the first place he would look. She ran until she couldn’t think about where she wanted to go anymore. She checked the location on her phone and saw she had run far enough to skip over Oregon and ended up in California.  _ I mean running might not have been the best idea but it did feel good. I can’t believe after all I told him he would assume I would do something like that. _

Bella could feel her anger rising and she knew it wasn’t a good thing because it fueled her thirst and there were a lot of people around this time.  _ Maybe this can be a new beginning and I can leave this all behind me. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love writing Bella and Jacob's friendship. It isn't a normal friendship as it shouldn't be but it works so well. I've been in situations where I could feel every second passing by so I understand Bella when she was sitting there counting seconds. I didn't know which way to turn this story but I felt like it just continuing with Edward and Bella's relationship would've bored me so I brought in a problem. Have you been so angry that you could run from Washington to California completely ignoring Oregon? I haven't but Bella has. I hope you enjoy this chapter!


	13. part 13

Bella knew that if she didn’t find something to eat things would get rough and it would be harder for her to return to Forks. She ran deeper into the forest to find something to eat. What she was hunting for didn’t bother her as much as it might have in the past. She had one priority: drink. The only thing that would get in her way would be the ache she began to feel for human blood. 

_ Focus on the animals. _

As if on cue, she heard a bustle not too far away, indicating something was close. She ran and seconds later she was chowing down on a couple of deer. 

When she was fully satisfied, she found herself aimlessly wandering around Northern California. She made it to a little town that resembled Forks but was much bigger and was slightly warmer. 

While traveling through Crescent City looking for a place she could stay if she needed to, her mind began to think about all of the people left in Forks who could be attacked by one or more rabid vampires.

_ I can’t just run away from this and be okay with the fact that everyone I care about could die. I don’t think I would be okay if any of them died and I could’ve done something to stop it. I have to do something about this.  _

She spent approximately 30 minutes in Crescent City, the quickest she ever spent in one place even in her nomad days, excluding the places she was passing through. 

On her way back she couldn’t stop thinking about the dumb things her human friends would do to get themselves in danger.  _ Easily for Mike, he’d be the first one to go. Death by falling in love with a vampire. Angela would be the last because she would outsmart the vampires into making them think she was one of them. Leaving Eric, Jessica, Lauren, and Tyler tied in the middle. Each of their outcomes differed depending on the slight decisions they make. _

The thought of losing her friends made her run more significant than before. She passed through Oregon in 16 minutes, whereas on the opposite trip it took about 27 minutes. She hadn’t realized she even entered Oregon at that point but she was pretty good at deliberating. 

Once she got back to Forks, she checked on everyone at their houses. When Bella reached Mike’s house and didn’t hear his familiar voice anywhere in the area there was a slight twinge in her stomach. She then remembered that he worked at his father’s hardware store sometimes and she made her way there. When she reached everyone else’s houses she relaxed, knowing everyone was fine. 

She dreaded going back to her house for fear Edward would be waiting for her there. When she got there he wasn’t there, though. 

She had a few things she wanted to think about, so she ran into her house, got her journal, and brought it up to the tree where she knew every thought she ever had was safe. A couple of hours later, she regretted that decision because Edward plopped himself down on that same branch they both shared many times before.

“I knew I could find you up here,” he said. He couldn’t read Bella’s thoughts but he knew she wanted to be alone. He knew that he needed to explain everything. “Before you leave, let me say something.”

Bella didn’t say anything to him. She didn’t want to talk to someone who so easily thought she would throw away all of the progress she had made. 

“I did initially think that you may have gone back to your old ways. It was a stupid thing to think but I know that you wouldn’t do that,” he started. Bella didn’t say anything, again. “You know that I trust your progress, truly I do. I don’t know why that was my first thought but I sincerely apologize.” 

_ I guess I should say something to him. It was terrible for him to assume that I had regressed to the point I would attack the whole town. _

Bella still didn’t say anything. She just sat in the tree writing in her journal. Edward didn’t leave her side. They stayed there until the sun rose and it was time to go to school. Edward gave her privacy when she went into her house to change her clothes but was right next to her when she was finished. While the day passed at school, Bella wanted so desperately to take the day to ignore Edward but he was always there. Half of Bella thought he was there waiting for her to break and attack the whole town, but the other half knew he was just waiting on her to say something to him. Everyone at school assumed that their relationship escalated since homecoming, unaware of the impending threat that they face. When Edward sat with Bella at lunch no one questioned it, out loud. 

When the school day finished, Bella hopped into her car and Edward was right in the passenger’s seat. She, however, didn’t go home. 

“Where are you going?” Edward asked but, again Bella still wasn’t in the mood to speak with him.  _ In all honesty, I didn’t quite know where I was going. I just felt like driving. _

Bella might’ve made it back to Crescent City if Edward didn’t shift himself in the passenger’s seat, bringing Bella back to reality. He could tell she didn’t realize where they ended up. “We’re in Astoria, Oregon,” Edward said. 

Bella pulled into a parking lot, hopped out of the car, and began walking on the beach. It was one of the warmer days for early October, but it was cool and cloudy enough to hide in. Of course, Edward followed her, she was hoping for that. 

“Why was that the first place your thoughts went?” Bella finally asked Edward. Edward was surprised that she said something after only a day, knowing her she could’ve held out for longer.

“I didn’t want that to be the place my thoughts went. With your history, I thought, maybe everything could’ve been a lie,” he admitted. He saw all of the anger and emotion pour into her face, knowing what he said wasn’t what she wanted to hear. “It was only for a second, you left before I could explain anything.”

“Yeah, I ran to California,” she said. The statement wasn’t funny but Edward’s lips curved into a smile because of the dramatics of it all. 

“You have to understand me, though,” Edward started. They were standing centimeters from each other, anyone watching could tell it was an intense conversation. “My thought lasted one second. I immediately knew that it couldn’t have possibly been you. I knew that if any part of you felt the urge to kill a human you would come to someone in my family to sort that out. I know because it happened before,” he said holding her head in his hands.

Bella pulled away from him. “You still thought about it though. No matter how long it was, you still think I’m capable of doing that. I mean I am capable of it, you are, too. I don’t go around thinking that you’ll kill a whole town just because you’re extra broody that day.”

“I know, Bella. I sincerely apologize for thinking that. I know how damaging that was to think that. To see all of the progress you made and have it thrown away for a measly second.”

“Does everyone else think that it’s me?” Bella didn’t want to ask the question. Edward didn’t want to answer it. Bella knew what his hesitation meant. “Who?” she asked.

“Alice thinks that somehow her vision was a result of you acting impulsively because that’s what we said during the chess game. Everyone else had mixed thoughts about it. After my split second of doubt, I made it clear that if you had any thoughts about attacking humans that you would come to our house and Emmett hopped on board with me. Rosalie soon followed, though she never doubted you in the first place. Jasper admitted that he knows what you’re going through but he would have felt something cooking up in you and he never did. Esme was always on your side and Carlisle might still need convincing, which is an odd stance for him to have.” 

“I appreciate you for telling me that,” Bella said. She knew that it couldn’t have been easy to say that to her.  _ I do have that colorful past. I have to understand that their reactions are reasonable but it hurts when you thought that these people trusted you. _

Bella wondered so much about the last couple of days on the drive back to Forks. So much had happened and she barely had time to think about it all. First, Edward had fully kissed her, and the moment surrounding it was fantastic. She didn’t hate the kiss but everything that came along with kissing Edward. It meant that her life was beginning to solidify in Forks. Then, the intimate moment of sharing her thoughts with Edward. Although at the time, she didn’t know what she was doing, she liked having that moment with him. Then, Edward came home from his trip with his family early because he wanted to spend time with Bella. It wasn’t a foreign feeling to have someone want Bella, but it was unfamiliar that she would want them back. She had Jon from France and that was the only long relationship she had. Although, Jon was much different than Edward. Edward elicits every emotion from Bella that she never thought she could have. Just him being on this trip annoyed her but she knew it was out of the care he has for her. She couldn’t possibly be angry with someone who cared so much for her.

Then, on the other hand, Bella didn’t even know if this life was for her. She had been having an identity crisis for a while, wondering how her life ended up where it was. Maybe there was truth to what Alice thought, maybe she does act impulsively and kill everyone in town. 

“If it’s not me then who is it?” Her thoughts made their way out of her mouth, forgetting where she was and who was with her. They were 10 minutes from Forks now. 

Edward didn’t have an answer to her question he wondered the same thing. It might not have been fair that he wondered this but it was a thought that lingered in his mind. 

“That’s something we have to figure out,” he said. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It had been five weeks since Alice had that vision. Nothing pointed to new vampires arriving in town, either. This made Bella anxious. She didn’t want that vision to be about her, but the more time passed without new vampires showing up the more she thought it was about her.

In the five weeks, Edward would not leave Bella’s side, still. Anywhere she went, he was there. They had identical schedules at school so it wasn’t an issue for him to find his way to her there. When she went hunting he kept his distance, but always there. When she wanted to hang out with Jake he was there. Although those visits were planned, more than before, so he could be there but Jacob wouldn’t know about it. Bella felt like he was always around waiting for her to do something bad to happen.

At first, Bella was fine with the company Edward brought, he even used Bella’s mother’s room for the hour of supervised alone time she got. She could only be in her room and the window had an alarm on it so if opened Edward would know. She didn’t even know how that got there. He never left. The absolute worst thing for Bella was that there was no relief. If this were happening to a human there would be those 8 hours of sleep where she could go and dream of a place that Edward didn’t exist. 

She didn’t hate having him around. That was one of the good things was that it was Edward. He lived with her. There were moments, Bella noticed while she sat with her friends at lunch, he didn’t pay attention to her. He would talk to his siblings and give them updates about Bella. In some ways, this was his form of relief from Bella. 

They never discussed why he was around all of the time. It started that one day and never stopped. Bella did notice how he escalated though. The first day it happened, it was almost as if he was there to be there but as those weeks went on she began to notice how it was more of a chore for him to be there. This changed their relationship, whatever they had, drastically. Edward, trying to go unnoticed, tiptoed around Bella more. In turn, Bella shared less with him. The relationship felt more professional than anything it had felt before.

“Can you trade spots with Emmett today?” Bella asked on a Saturday. They had a routine now that it had been five weeks. On Saturdays, Bella would hunt, catch up on homework, and hang out with her friends. Bella knew that she needed time away from Edward or she would burst. 

Edward was confused at the thought of Bella wanting to change the plans for the first time in so long. This worried him but not too much. 

“I just think I need to spend time with someone who isn’t you,” Bella said, seeing his confusion form on his face. 

“I suppose that could work,” Edward said, grabbing his phone from his pocket and calling Emmett to tell him the plans. 

After a few seconds Bella heard “She wants you today,” and “No, everything seems alright,” from Edward talking to Emmett. 

Not five minutes later Emmett showed up at her house and Edward was far gone. 

“What’s up with this?” Emmet asked. 

“I think that I’ve been spending too much time with Edward. We never talked about why he is always around me but I know it’s because he is watching me. This has seriously shifted our relationship. I don’t think that I can spend another week with him.”

“I will take that into consideration when I report back to the rest of the family,” Emmett said. 

Having Emmett around was a breath of fresh air. After being with Edward for the last five weeks, even at a distance, she could feel every emotion radiate off of him. She knew that Emmett would tell her everything if she just asked. 

“I’m sure you’re familiar with the rigorous schedule I am on,” Bella said. 

“I am aware. We should be out hunting right now,” Emmett said. “What are you in the mood for today?” he asked, pretending to be a waiter at a restaurant holding his hand out ready to write.

“It’s been a while since I had a bear,” Bella said, giving Emmett a knowing look, and raced to his car. 

“Already you seem better,” Emmett blurted out.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, as you know Edward has been reporting back to everyone how you’ve been doing since Alice’s vision. At first, what he was saying wasn’t alarming at all, but as the weeks went on he told us about how your mood had begun to change. That immediately alarmed all of us. We’ve been confused for the last couple of days trying to figure out when you were going to attack everyone.”

“I’m not going to attack anyone. It has been exhausting being monitored. The fact that you all are waiting until I flip out kind of makes me want to,” Bella joked. “I won’t though.”

When they arrived at the primal location for bear hunting, Bella couldn’t contain herself. She was like a kid in an amusement park. The car stopped, she opened her door and bolted it leaving all of the built-up tension from the last weeks behind. 

She thought about running until she couldn’t go anymore and not looking back. That thought was so bright and prevalent in her mind it was hard to let it go. She didn’t want the Cullens to be chasing her forever so she waited where she was for Emmett.

“It took you long enough to find me,” Bella said toward the rustling of the leaves that covered the ground, thinking it was Emmett.

“I know it has been quite a while, hasn’t it?” The voice that responded wasn’t Emmett, but someone else she recognized. Once she turned around her hunch had been confirmed. It was James, the vampire who turned her. 

Bella never knew much about the vampire who turned her. She knew what he looked like and that he longed for a family which was why he always made sure he had followers with him. For instance, now he has a gorgeous redheaded vampire and a lanky vampire by his sides. Once Bella found out more about James, she kept tabs on him. She discovered that he was turned by his parents who later abandoned him. He was always chasing that family feeling. When he turned Bella there was a different group with him but all the same, it was what he wanted. 

“What are you doing here?” Bella asked. 

“We heard what you have been up to and wanted to see if we could join in,” James said. He talked as if Bella knew who the other vampires were. 

“What have I been up to?” Bella knew that if she shared too much with James he would be able to turn anything against her.

“We heard you have your own family here.” Bella wouldn’t call it a family but he wasn’t wrong. 

“You want a family,” Bella stated. Bella knew this and it was basic information on James. 

“Bella, who are these vampires?” Emmett asked before James got a chance to respond to Bella.

Bella had no time to reply. James, his two frontmen, and a couple of other vampires who were hidden attacked Emmett. As long as Bella knew him, Emmett had been the strongest vampire she knew. She didn’t know if it was because he was stunned or because of the number of vampires attacking him, but he was conquered. 

“Stop!” Bella shouted after she couldn’t take the sound of Emmett cracking like broken glass anymore. “You’ll kill him.” Bella was almost crying.  _ Emmett can’t go out like this, he deserves better.  _ “James, I can help you get your family,” Bella said the only thing she could think to make him stop and it worked. 

James held his hand up and all of the vampires stopped attacking Emmett. “How?” James asked.

“We can figure something out, but it can’t be here,” Bella said and instantly regretted saying that because James now knew something he could use against Bella.

“Oh, no, I think here is the best place,” James said, grabbing Bella and running away with her. 

As James ran with Bella towards Forks the only thing she could hear in the distance was Emmett saying “Yeah they took her,” probably on a phone to one of his siblings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I know it has been awhile since I posted but thanks for staying. Let's get into it. I wanted there to be another issue in this story because I didn't want to stop writing so I introduced James in this. He's a lot different in this and sometimes I felt like he was talking in an accent in the voice in my head. So he is the vampire that turned Bella but let's keep reading to see what trouble he gets into.


	14. part 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Forks is changing a lot, just like Bella.

They had been hiding out in Bella’s house for a day now. No one mentioned what James’ plan was. Bella was weary to ask James his plan for fear of what he and all of his followers could do. 

“It’s time to hunt,” James said to Bella. This was the first time he spoke directly to her since he did in the forest the previous day. 

Of course, the Cullens had come to try to rescue Bella but they were severely outnumbered. After Bella was captured throngs of vampires followed James to Bella’s house. By the end of the day, at least 15 vampires were swarming her house. 

“Please James, let’s go somewhere else to do this,” Bella pleaded, knowing he wouldn’t be fond of her diet.

Filled with determination to figure out who Bella was protecting, he ran up to her fangs at the ready. “Bella, my dear, it is not natural for you to protect these humans. It is better off if they didn’t exist,” James said. 

Bella knew they were on their way to hunt humans. It was tough for Bella to not want to kill one of the three fishermen at the dock they stopped at. There had been so much pent up anger coursing through Bella that made it easier to want them dead. 

The smell of blood from one of the men was rushing through her whole body.  _ It has been so long since I’ve enjoyed a human.  _ She couldn’t tell if the “Kill them” she heard came from her thoughts or James, but she didn’t hesitate. 

Not five minutes later, both of the remaining fishermen were dead and the vampires who tagged along with James and Bella were angry they didn’t have a bite. 

Bella has made a decision that has made her uncontrollable again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bella ended up going back to school the next day. She figured that if the Cullens suspected her, they knew school was the last place she would try something. 

The problem, now, was that Bella couldn’t go a whole class period without wanting to kill someone. By the end of the day she had killed six more people. 

Alice’s vision has come to fruition. All that worrying Bella did about the vision meant nothing now. The only thought she could care to have lately was where her next person was coming from.

She stopped hanging around her usual group of friends because the minuscule part of her that could care about them was so small she didn’t want to risk it. 

Bella knew she couldn’t come back to school or she would end up killing everyone there. James still didn’t want to change locations and he wasn’t doing much besides encouraging Bella to kill people. “You don’t have to ask me twice,” Bella would say. 

The next day came and Bella’s body count raised six more. By the end of the week, Bella had killed over 40 people and people were wondering what was going on. 

The Cullens left as soon as they knew Bella started killing people again for fear they would be suspected. Jacob and his pack were doing everything to rid the town of vampires, but it seemed as the days went on James brought more vampires into the town. Slowly, the town of Forks was nothing like it had once been. The population is decreasing in humans and increasing in vampires, and by that measure werewolves, too. 

It had been three weeks since James and his followers came into town and the death count has racked up to over 200 people. The police department in Forks has never worked so hard in its existence to figure out who is doing all of the killings. No one suspects Bella as the main suspect with her share of 115 of those bodies. 

Bella doesn’t need direction from James on who to hunt anymore.  _ It was, as the humans say, like riding a bike. I only needed one more go at it and it was like I never stopped in the first place. I can’t remember why I stopped in the first place. _ As Bella thought this, it was like the universe was showing her the reasons right in front of her. Jacob and Mike were far in the distance ahead of her but in the direction, she was headed. 

She slowed her running to think if she ran off course and passed the treaty line because the only reason she could understand why they would be in the same place at the same time would be on La Push Beach. Except they weren’t on the beach together, they were randomly in the middle of town saying goodbye to each other.

As Jacob was turning to get on a motorcycle he spotted Bella. She knew there was no way she would be able to escape him now.

“Bella, wait,” Jacob said sternly. 

Bella didn’t know what to say. She knew he would ask about everything happening and he would know if she was lying. She was walking away from any human listening ears, leading her into the nearest area surrounded by trees. She was walking ahead of him.

“Bella, I know that this is you. You don’t have to be killing all of these people,” he said. This surprised Bella. She knew he would know about the vampires in town but she didn’t know that he would know she was doing most of the killing. “Edward told me everything.” The mention of his name stopped her in her tracks. Just saying his name brought every memory she shared of him in the short months she had known him and along with the memories came the feelings, too. 

She didn’t want the feelings and memories anymore so she ran as fast as she could away from Jacob to a house overrun by vampires that didn’t feel like home anymore. 

One night, when Bella knew that James was out hunting, something possessed her to go to the Cullens’ house. She stopped going to school when she couldn’t be around people anymore without killing them but she knew they were gone but being at the house brought a warmth she hadn’t felt in a long time. They used to check on her daily even though they had left but after that stopped she felt hopeless. It was her reminder that somehow there would be an end to what she was going through but them being gone in every aspect made everything more absolute. 

_ This is who I am. I was made to be this killer. The other life is what got in my way. I was foolish to think that I could be anything other than a vampire who kills humans. I have to stop thinking about this part of my life. _

And Bella tried to forget about that part of her life. She stopped going to school so she wouldn’t be provoked to kill her former friends or their families. But as she was cutting ties to the former life, James was digging his way deeper into the months she spent creating that life. He knew about the Cullens, her friends, and the wolves. He knew anything that would be useful to Bella if she ever got away from him.

James was the leader of this group he had. A group of vampires who were searching for a family and made their makeshift ones with other vampires in the group. James never attached to anyone. He spent the time everyone else did with their families researching vampire trivia. He knows about the Cullens being “vegetarian,” he knows about different powers that some vampires possess, and he knows, now, everything about Bella.

All of this knowledge wasn’t satisfying for him, though. He still wanted something more but there was nothing else he could take from Bella. He changed her back to the bloodthirsty vampire that he only knew from stories of other vampires. Before leaving, though, he wanted to finalize his terror on her life. 

When Bella decided that she would stop going to school, James became curious. He knew she had friends here, and she had the pictures to prove it, but a vampire of her caliber shouldn’t care. When she decided to stop going to school he knew it was so that she wouldn’t kill any of them. The only option he has now is to make her kill one of her friends.

“Bella?” James asked on a day she knew she was around. He planned this, one of the only things that he took the time out to plan something so perfectly. 

Bella didn’t answer, only entered the room he was in.

“Bella, it’s so lovely to see you,” James started. They haven’t seen each other in quite a while, James trusted Bella’s instincts that she would devour anyone that got in her way. Bella, on the other hand, thinks James knows about her run-in with Jacob. “I just wanted to see how you have been, Bella. Maybe we could go hunting together.”

“Yeah, we could do that,” Bella said. It was unlike James to ask Bella to go hunting together. He only did it that once and that trip awoke Bella’s murderous tendencies. She was worried she was doing something wrong.

When they got outside Bella didn’t know where to go, so she followed James. He went into the forest that she knew too well.  _ If we’re hunting why are we in the forest? Something isn’t right here. _

They approached the clearing that Bella knew from her nights of talking to wolf Jacob and she got a gut feeling that something bad was going to happen here. 

“Bring him out,” James said. Before Bella knew who “him” was she hoped beyond every hope in her body that whoever it was it wasn’t Jake. Every inch of her body hardened at the metallic smell of blood that passed her nose before the sight of a mangled body lay at the feet of two other vampires from James’s group. 

Relief quickened over Bella when she realized that Jacob wasn’t the one laying at their feet. Just as soon as the relief came, it went with the recognition of the giant letter F on Mike’s letterman. 

Bella knew she wouldn’t be able to save him from herself or the three other vampires that were surrounding him. Luckily she didn’t have to. 

As soon as she was ready to pounce on Mike and drain the rest of the blood he had left, a fourth unknown vampire pushed her away and she went flying.  _ What the f---!?? Who the hell was that?! _ She followed the smell of Mike’s blood back to the clearing where the unknown vampire stood. Except he wasn’t unknown. She knew exactly who it was. 

Edward. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay Edward is here to save the day! I didn't want this chapter to drag on or be too long on purpose so I didn't write the Cullens too much into it. I knew the direction this chapter was going in and I wanted it to feel quick because that's how quick things changed. Anyway I didn't think that I would have to write Mike as a damsel in distress but there he is. I originally wanted it to be Lauren but I didn't think she would have been important enough to Bella or Edward so it became Mike.


	15. part 15

Edward was prepared to fight off three vampires on his own. The most difficult of them being Bella. Now with human blood coursing through her system, she was much stronger. Although by the time Bella entered the clearing again Edward managed to get rid of James and his accomplice. 

Bella was somewhat unstoppable, though. The desire to kill Mike became the only thought in her head and she was determined to finish him off. It didn’t matter that he was once her friend, as James predicted. Although, he knew that if Bella killed Mike it would ruin her once she realized what she had done. No matter how vicious Bella would become her time in Forks changed her forever. 

“Bella, listen to me,” Edward said guarding Mike’s body. 

Bella couldn’t look at him, unable to stop staring at Mike’s lifeless body. Bella stood, nostrils flared, neck stiff, eyebrows pulled together, and mouth slightly pursed. She was barely listening to Edward.  _ I need to kill him. If I kill Edward, then I can get to Mike.  _

Almost as if he knew what she was thinking again, Edward said “Bella” with the most anger that he has ever spoken to anyone. It worked in Edward’s favor because Bella’s focus was pulled from Mike.

Bella still stood in the same spot with the same expressions with her eyes looking into Edward’s now. He was angry, filled with a fury Bella only slightly knew from the day they met. Anger wasn’t the only thing Bella knew from looking at Edward, though. She could sense that he was afraid. It was unexpected for Edward to fear Bella. 

Bella was unable to move, knowing her next move would be one of an attack on either Mike or Edward. The only thing keeping Bella in her place was the fear she saw in Edward. 

Then, Alice came from the surrounding forest and carried Mike away. 

“She’s taking him to Carlisle before he bleeds to death,” Edward explained to a statue of Bella who still couldn’t decide on her next move. 

Edward was the weaker vampire out of the two solely on the fact that she had human blood running through her veins. In any other aspect, he could defend himself against her. So, the next thing he did was hope that he was enough of a reason for Bella to not attack him. He takes her in his arms, bridal style, and runs with her until he reaches his destination. 

This destination didn’t have anyone or anything around. It was unknowable. The only things Bella knew about it was that it was a long run, no one was around, and it was colder. Bella was inside her thoughts the whole way. She knew she wanted Mike’s blood but he was long gone now. Since Edward took that away from her she wanted to retaliate but she knew deep down that she couldn’t. 

Everything inside her was tearing her apart at the seams. She wanted to kill Edward for not letting her get to Mike but the other half of her wouldn’t let her attack. That half knew feelings bubbled inside Bella, which awoke her to new experiences. She hated that she couldn’t ignore everything ripping her apart. There wasn’t a switch that she could just turn off her emotions and shut out every emotion she felt toward Edward. She never forgot how he made her feel even while James was turning over her life. He was the symbol of her different life. Recognizing him made her remember all she had in Forks. Forks. A place she could never return to with people who will just be a memory now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bella woke up, unaware of how much time had passed and unaware she passed out. She only remembers being in Edward’s arms and thinking about her life in Forks.  _ Something must’ve knocked me unconscious. _

As her vision cleared she took in her surroundings. In the  [ one-room cabin ](https://www.travelocity.com/inspire/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Tollgate-Log-Cabin_Oregon.jpg) , she sat on an all too familiar couch and noticed that the place was probably made for a human rather than a semiconscious vampire. The bed was made, the kitchen had pots and pans, the fridge had food, and there was a television. 

The far-away sound of someone making their way to the door startled Bella into pretending she was still unconscious. 

“I have to go, she’ll be awake soon.” As the voice came closer she could tell it was Edward. 

“I don’t know. I might just snap her neck again if her eyes are still red,” Edward said.  _ How long has he been snapping my neck? Why is he doing it? _

“Carlisle, it’s been five days. The only thing I can think of is that she consumed so much human blood that her body is taking a long time to get rid of it,” Edward said. The mention of blood made the glands in her mouth ache.  _ Five days without blood _ . 

Bella couldn’t hear Carlisle on the other end of the phone Bella assumed Edward was using, but she figured she had enough time to check to see what color her eyes were. She sped to the bathroom and looked at her reflection. Her eyes were still red, not as bright as she knew they could be but red enough for it to concern Edward some more. 

She zoomed back to the couch where she woke up and pretended to be passed out, hopefully, she was good enough at pretending that Edward wouldn’t notice the difference. 

When he entered the cabin, he walked over to Bella and delicately forced open her eyes one at a time checking if they were red. Bella knew what was about to happen but couldn’t prepare for what Edward said beforehand.

“Bella, I know you know this is for your good,  _ I _ know this is for your good. It doesn’t make it any easier each time I have to do it. I’m doing this for your future even if by doing this I can no longer be in your future. I’m so sorry, Bella. I lo-.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_ What was he saying? How long has it been this time? I hope my eyes are black so we can talk about this. _

Again, Bella woke to an empty cabin, unaware of how much time has passed. She waited a few minutes, listening to hear if Edward was around, before opening her eyes. Unsure if he was being very still or not in the room, she took the risk and opened her eyes. 

Edward wasn’t around so Bella was safe. She went to check her eyes to see if she would be unconscious when he came back. She looked at her reflection and saw that her eyes glittered gold.  _ If I’ve been comatose for however long, how was I getting animal blood? _ Bella stared at her reflection until it no longer stunned her. She even brought her hand up to her eye as if she were able to touch the gold and spend it. 

“I’ve been giving you blood,” Edward said and he suddenly became visible in her reflection. “I brought you here to drain you from your human blood. So we could have a collected conversation about everything that was happening and where you want your future to go. I didn’t think the human blood coursing through you would’ve been productive in the conversation I wanted to have.” They moved to sit on the couch now.

“How long have I been out?” Bella asked. She didn’t want Edward to know she was conscious the other time, yet. 

“I took you from the forest two weeks ago. I needed you to be unconscious so, and I apologize for this, I snapped your neck. Unfortunately, you are a vampire and your healing rate is exponential when you’re on human blood. At first, you were healing every hour, which became very unfortunate for me. As the blood left your body your recovery time became longer and I could leave you unattended. This last time though was the longest. I snapped your neck about nine days ago and when you didn’t wake I knew that I probably shouldn't have done it that time. I was really worried you were never going to wake up so last night I got a mountain goat and injected its blood into your system hoping it would work.”

“How did you inject blood into me?”

“Out of everything I just told you I’m glad that’s the thing you question first,” Edward started. “The first time I snapped your neck and it lasted about a day I contacted Carlisle and he suggested extracting the human blood from your system. I didn’t think that would work but it wouldn’t hurt to try. I didn’t have anything to extract your blood with. I met Carlisle back in Seattle; I didn’t want anyone to know where we were in case things didn’t work out or so no one would intervene.” Bella knew that he meant if she killed him. He didn’t want his family to find his lifeless body, well more lifeless. 

“But Alice?”

“Alice was a complication. She would know where we were and there wasn’t a way to change that,” Edward said, and as if on cue Bella heard something outside. “I had to bring reinforcements,” he said pointing at the window where a summer dressed Jacob stood. Bella tilted her head and brought her eyebrows together in confusion. “We agreed to work together for you. He is a great friend you have.”

“What does he have to do with Alice?”

“Alice can’t see him or any others from his pack. We have drifted from the plot, let’s get back to it,” Edward suggested and Bella nodded. “Anyway, Carlisle loaned me some needles to try to extract the blood from you. When I tried it, there was no success. I could only extract venom. So, I had the needles laying around and had the idea to inject you with blood, hoping it would help.”

“And it did,” Bella said, remembering her golden eyes.

“Thankfully.”

“So, what was the conversation you wanted to have? The reason you drained my blood?”

“I wanted to explain to you with a clear mind what James did and how you feel about it.”

“Go ahead,” Bella said and Edward started. 

Edward described in full detail what James was doing for the weeks he was in Bella’s life. She knew some of it but most of it was blurred behind the thirst she developed. Edward got into what happened with Mike and that he was recovering with new knowledge of vampires; he’s now a problem the Cullens have to deal with constantly. Edward also mentioned the irreparable damage that Bella’s killing has done to Forks. He also mentioned that she and the Cullens are not allowed in Forks anymore due to the treaty even though Bella was never a Cullen or part of the treaty. 

“Then we tracked James down--which wasn't easy--ripped his body to shreds, and set them on fire for good measure,” Edward finished. 

“I did all of that,” Bella said, a mixture of shock and despair spread on her face and her hand was on her chest.

“Yes. As a vampire, you shouldn’t feel too ashamed about it, it’s natural. Also, as a vampire--”

“You were afraid of me,” Bella interrupted Edward, pulling her body as far away from him as she could get by still sitting on the couch. “I-I-I was going to kill Mike,” Bella said, afraid of herself. 

She knew she was a killer vampire and a good one at that but she didn’t think it would be bad enough to kill someone she cared about. Although, she never had any humans that she cared so much for since her mother and Maggie and she left them so she wouldn’t kill them. If she was able to cry right now, she would. 

“Bella, listen to me,” Edward said, scooting closer to Bella and resting his hand on her leg. “You can recover from this. You are feeling all of your emotions right now because you aren’t clouded by the thirst for human blood. That’s why I wanted to do it this way, so you can think clearly.” 

For a moment, Edward let Bella take in everything she learned. She didn’t realize James was torturing her life for weeks, to her it felt like days. She didn’t realize the number of people she killed, changing the population of Forks forever. 

“Bella, I have to ask you if you want to keep living your life that way. That was the conversation I wanted to have, to talk about your future.”

“My future? Can I have a moment to think about it?” Bella asked and once Edward nodded she got up to go outside. 

As she noticed before, Jacob was out there. 

“Are you the version of you I remember?” He asked upon making eye contact with her, immediately knowing the answer.

“Yes, it’s me. I wanted to apologize for a lot of things but mostly disobeying everything you told me about your family’s history,” Bella said. 

“It wasn’t your fault,” he said walking toward her.

“It was. I could’ve just run away from it but I didn’t. I chose to stay and cause so much damage. What I did was unforgivable so I understand if you don’t want to speak with me but I would be really glad if you did.”

“Listen, Bella. James did that to you. Do you think you would’ve killed that many people or any people at all if he didn’t force you to make that first kill? I don’t think you would have. A lot of us don’t think so either. It took some convincing but there are people on your side,” Jake said, nearing Bella. “What you did all those weeks, it wasn’t you.”

“I know, but I did it. I can’t excuse my behavior because it fits my narrative.”

Jacob had to swallow the lump that was forming in his throat. The Bella that he knew had changed forever. No matter the pep talks, the number of people he gathered on her side, or the assurance he gave her she would never be the same. He would always be searching for the Bella he knew from meetings in the forest. Where one touch of her skin could leave stinging pulses for minutes after it happened. It hurt him to know that the months he had with her were gone because of the weeks she had with James.

Edward even told Jake that she would be different from this. Getting the memories back would bring on a whole new deal of pain. She would remember wanting to kill people she cared so deeply for. It wouldn’t be easy. Over time she would eventually forget her time in Forks, the good and the bad, but that meant leaving it all behind. 

“Bella, I know Edward wants you to talk to him about your future,” Jacob paused for a second. “I hope that somehow you include me in it. There’s no way for me to know what you’re choosing but I don’t want you to forget me.”

“Jacob I could never forget you. Our connection means too much to me. That day I spotted you and Mike in the parking lot made me double-take my life. You mean too much to me,” Bella said. Even though she knew what was going to happen, she wrapped her arms around his in a hug. Once he realized what was happening he hugged her back. The stinging that happened could’ve restarted Bella’s heart. 

“Whatever I choose for my future, I couldn’t imagine it without you there. Or as there as you can be considering your circumstances,” Bella said after letting go of Jake.

“It’s nice to be able to talk to you once again, Bella,” Jake said, grinning from ear to ear. 

For Bella, being able to talk to Jake again was like a warm hug, it’s familiar and comforting. For the next hour they talk about no topic, in particular, just not wanting to end the conversation. 

“I guess I have a decision to make,” Bella said. 

“Whatever you decide, I will support you,” Jacob said. 

Bella walked back into the cabin, walking over to Edward who was still perched on the couch. 

“Let me go first,” Bella said sitting next to him, knowing he was going to say something. “I know a couple of things that I want. I know that I don’t want my life to feel that out of my control again. I don’t know the facts behind it but it was much different than having the human blood by my choice. I know that I could live the rest of my life on your diet. I don’t know how I’m starting this life but I would like you to be there with me.”

Edward wasn’t expecting that from Bella. He thought for sure that snapping her neck a lot of times would have led her away. If that didn’t do it maybe the injection of blood would’ve but he is glad nonetheless. 

“Bella, I don’t know what to say. I didn’t think you wanted any part of me.”

“I do and I know that because I couldn’t imagine being in this situation with anyone else. A while ago, I saw Jake and Mike talking and Jake spotted me,” she said, resting her hand on his knee. “When he told me that he was talking to you, the mention of your name was enough to bring me back. I couldn’t ignore everything we had been through even if it happened quickly. It was like love blossoming inside of me.”

Relief flushed over Edward, knowing she felt the same way as he did. 

“Love is a powerful thing,” he said. 

Before Bella could recognize her movements she leaned in to kiss Edward. The kiss was quick but carried the meaning to every love song Bella had heard before, almost like she never did it before. 

As Bella’s lips crushed Edward's, his lifeless heart could’ve skipped a beat. The kiss was something he was aching for but he didn’t realize it until it happened. 

“Wait,” Edward said when Bella pulled away and pulled her in for a minute more. “I hope that was okay.”

“Yes, it was,” Bella said with a smile. 

The first thing Bella wanted to do to start her life was to visit Mike and apologize for almost killing him. Edward felt it would be safer to wait a while before human interaction so they spent a couple of weeks at the cabin. 

They practiced Bella’s resistance to blood with Jacob’s blood, only with his permission. Although he is a wolf and his blood is different from a human’s it is similar enough for Bella’s sake. 

After those couple of weeks building up Bella’s resistance, talking about her future, hunting, and doing whatever it was finally time to reintroduce Bella to the general population. Bella had since learned that Edward took her to seclusion in Alaska. They were far in the north with no one around but Edward wanted a practice run before she officially got her exposure. 

They traveled to Nome, Alaska which had enough people spread out that, if needed, Edward could protect who he needed to. They spent the whole day there before heading back to the cabin to report to Jacob that Bella would be able to visit Mike. 

With that, Jacob went back to Forks and Edward started the journey to where the rest of his family took residence. 

“Where is your family?” Bella wondered after trailing behind Edward for what seemed like a long time. 

“Well, they wanted to be near Forks for Mike’s sake but after everything that happened, they decided to stay as far away as possible. Carlisle has connections at a hospital in Manitoba, so that’s where they went.”

“Manitoba? Canada?”

“Yes, that’s the one.” 

“The more I find out about Carlisle, the more things don’t make sense.”

“It’s easy to follow if you’ve been around him for a while.”

“Says the one who has been around him for a while.”

_ I wonder what Mike said when he found out he was in Canada. It’s not like they could run under the radar like Edward and me. They were traveling with a human on the brink of death. Edward told me I can’t think about Mike’s death without thinking about him. So, Edward looks good today. He knows that I’m sensitive to the topic of humans dying and he knows that he brings me out of that. He decided that it would be good to pair thoughts of death with thoughts of him.  _

“Bella, we’re almost there,” Edward said.  _ Sometimes I think that he  _ can _ hear my thoughts even though I know I have to allow him to hear them.  _

As they approached the hospital, Edward knew that it was going to be very difficult for Bella to enter. He stood next to her, holding her hand. “It’s going to be okay,” he whispered to Bella.

Alice met them in the waiting room to take them to see Mike. 

“He’s all bandaged up and getting discharged tomorrow, so everything should be good,” Alice filled them in on the walk to his room. Alice was the only Cullen there today.

“Mike, I’m so sorry. I-” Bella didn’t know what to say. She wanted to say that she didn’t mean to want to kill him, but at the moment she did. 

“Mike, it’s good to see you’re doing well,” Edward said. 

The awkward silence filled the room. Alice, Edward, and Bella didn’t know what to say.

“Man, if I knew you were a vampire I might’ve done a few things differently. For one, I wouldn’t have defended myself so hard around you, Edward,” Mike said. 

After that, it was much easier to talk about everything. Bella apologized several times about wanting to kill him and he promised to forget about vampires forever after he left the hospital. Of course, he couldn’t forget about vampires, so the Cullens always had to make sure nothing about vampires came up while he was alive. 

The only thing left to do was for Edward and Bella to start their forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay hello!!!!! this is the last chapter of this story!!! there will be an Epilogue but the full story is over and I'm so happy with what I've created. I obviously want to end this on a good note. What do you think Mike will do with his information about vampires? I have no idea but I hope he sticks to his word. Bella and Edward are happy together and they are about to start their life together. Jacob is happy for Bella. Everyone is happy. It might be unrealistic but hey we need some good in life!!!!
> 
> Don't forget to stick around for the Epilogue it is coming soon!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> Thank you all for reading and giving me like an hour of your time (idk some of y'all read these fast)
> 
> Also, don't forget to give kudos and comment your thoughts!


	16. epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hi, this is the epilogue!!! 
> 
> I don't want to give anything away in this summary but I want people to see the things I made for this epilogue so please read the chapter notes at the end of the chapter!!!!!!!!!! but beware there are spoilers there!!!!

Bella and Edward spent three and a half years falling in love and traveling, away from his family on their own adventure. 

First, they took a secluded vacation to an island off the coast of Rio de Janeiro which Bella later knew as Isle Esme, an island that Carlisle bought for Esme. The island had everything that Bella could’ve wanted in their first vacation together. There were long days in the sun away from any prying eyes, hours hiking in the jungle, and moments Bella believed that the chaos she caused was all but a dream. She knew it was a fantasy because of the simple fact that she couldn’t have the sweet release of sleep to end her long days. 

After seven months they decided that it would be time to go home but they didn’t want to stop their adventure. They decided on going to Italy to make sure the Volturi weren’t talking about Mike. But that was only an excuse they used to bring meaning to another trip together. 

Italy was nothing like Bella imagined. Every step she took there was something new to smell. Though she couldn’t eat anything, she lived vicariously through everyone else she saw eating. 

Every moment for the next eight months was with Edward. He told stories about Carlisle’s time with the Volturi, how he almost moved to Italy, and long nights spent on their rented apartment balcony under the different phases of the moon. 

“Where do you want to go next?” Edward asked after spending months in Italy. 

“Let’s go to France,” Bella said. 

She wanted to show Edward some of her past, too. They’ve been to Isle Esme which belonged to his family and Italy has traces of him, too. It was time for Edward to see what Bella’s most memorable moments were. 

They spent six months in France. They went around the mountains, through the Palace of Versailles,—where Bella narrated the very night she lost someone so special to her— and weaved their way through all of the streets. 

Traveling with Edward meant everything to Bella. It reminded her that he stayed when her life was taking a turn for the worst. It reminded her that he was going to be there wherever and whenever. 

They decided that they wanted to make their memories on this trip instead of only living in their past ones. So, they decided on Asia and went to as many countries as they could fit in the 15 months they stayed there. 

They used their time in Asia to share things they never told each other. Edward learned that Bella broke her toe before she was a vampire. Bella learned that Edward was allergic to cats. They talked about how they wanted to spend their futures and neither could imagine one without the other. 

Neither of them was quite ready for the traveling to stop and they didn’t have to tell each other, they just knew. After Asia, they decided that Iceland would be perfect since it was summer and they needed more privacy. 

“I don’t know how I never thought of Iceland before,” Edward said one night while looking at the Northern Lights. 

“It’s because you’ve never been a nomad or even considered it. Once you leave home it can be hard to go back,” Bella said and Edward gave her a concerned look. “I didn’t mean that we would never go back, it’s just been good being just us.”

“Well since you bring ‘just us’ into this,” Edward said, moving at vampire speed and wasn’t sitting next to her anymore. He knelt in front of her while holding [a ring](https://www.brides.com/thmb/CZEoxKzaMijhyGF3kEoqK0Smy08=/1200x0/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\):format\(webp\)/__opt__aboutcom__coeus__resources__content_migration__brides__public__brides-services__production__2017__12__20__5a3aab5a8a9fab5bdb37ed24_The20Triple20Rose20Cut20Ring2C20248502C20Apres20Jewelry-9626b0a343714e71bf6a164db178bc8f.jpg) in a black box. Bella pulled her hands up to her face in shock. 

“Bella, I know we haven’t known each other for that long considering how old we are but I couldn’t imagine spending eternity with anyone else. I want to spend forever chasing the world with you. I want to fall in love with you in new places. I want to explore every inch of the world and I can’t imagine doing any of it without you. Will you give me the honor of marrying me?” Edward didn’t know he wanted to marry Bella when she sat in his seat that day in class but looking back on it now it felt inevitable. Their strings were already tied. 

Bella grabbed Edward’s hand so she could share her thoughts with him.

_If only I knew that Edward was going to ask me to marry him that day I sat in his seat maybe things would’ve played out differently. I knew I loved Edward since the first time we kissed and I’m talking about the peck on the cheek and not the one during homecoming_ , Bella thought and Edward chuckled. _I never would’ve thought that marriage was something that I would be interested in but I am and it’s with him._

Bella let go of his hand. 

“I would love to spend every second from now until the end of forever with you,” Bella said. 

Edward stood up, kissed Bella, and put the ring on her finger in what seemed like one movement. 

The next six months in Iceland were spent as a sort of pre-honeymoon. Every day was spent doing exactly what would be expected for a couple of vampires who just got engaged. 

Iceland was part of their story now and it would be a place that they could go back to every year to remember the moments made there. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You have to come home now so we can plan the wedding,” Alice said to Bella on the phone. 

Alice had to know that Bella and Edward were in the airport at that point. Bella knew Alice would be dying to help with preparations or even have the whole thing planned the second they land in Canada. 

“Alice, we’re already on our way,” Bella responded. _It’s weird saying stuff like that to Alice, knowing that she knew it already._

Edward and Bella started their three and a half year vacation quite immediately after seeing Mike that day in the hospital. There wasn’t much time to repair any relationships that had fallen due to James destroying Bella’s life. Thankfully, Edward was so close to his family and helped repair Bella’s and his family’s relationships. About once every month Edward would call into his family and give an update on where and what they were doing, just so they didn’t worry. At that time Bella would apologize to everyone. 

“I know but I wanted to leave some things up for a surprise,” Alice said. Bella and Alice said their goodbyes and Bella put Edward on the phone. 

When their flight landed, Bella was surprised to see Emmett and Rosalie waiting to pick them up from the airport. 

“Alice is going nuts with wedding prep already,” Emmett said. 

“We figured that would happen,” Edward said. 

When they all arrived at [ the Cullen house ](http://carlmhansen.com/#/calicool/) Bella was stunned that a house could so perfectly fit the Cullens. Bella hadn’t been here before and Edward hasn't been since the renovations so it looks new to him. There were enough rooms for each couple to share with two rooms left. 

“Bella, we're honored to hear the news, even if we normally do this kind of thing a different way,” Carlisle greeted, looking at Jasper and Alice and Rosalie and Emmett.

“I knew it would’ve been you, Bella, all along,” Esme said.

“Well, James terrorizing you gave me pause but out of everyone I think _I_ knew it the whole time,” Alice said and everyone laughed. 

Wedding planning with Alice was fun for Bella, but it took time away from Edward. After spending every minute with him for the last three and a half years it was weird being without him for hours a day. 

“Alice, this is Edward’s wedding, too, shouldn’t he be helping out with this?” Bella made the mistake of asking one day. 

“He is planning with Jasper. I have given Jasper a list of things that need to be done each day and they get them done. Our job isn’t so simple. We’re running behind on your dress. You both said you want your wedding to be in August? That will be a tough squeeze but I know the perfect shop.” 

Then before Bella knew it she was forced into a dressing room with at least seven dresses. 

It seemed like a whole year went by before Bella had a moment alone with Edward again. It was February 2024, Bella and Edward were sent hunting together, which didn’t happen since they arrived back home. 

“I can’t believe our wedding is in six months and this is the first moment we’ve spent alone since we got here,” Bella said. 

“I know it’s been long but there are only six months left and for us that will go fast,” Edward reassured Bella with a forehead kiss. 

And Edward was right, it went fast.

**Isabella Marie Swan**

**and**

**Edward Anthony Masen Cullen**

**Together with their families**

**Request the honor of your presence**

**At the celebration of their marriage**

**Tuesday, the thirteenth of August**

**Two thousand and twenty-four**

**Five o’clock in the evening**

**420 Woodcroft Ave**

**Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada**

The day started like any other the past year and a half, with Alice pulling Bella away from Edward. Except for this time, it was to get ready for the day. 

Bella wasn’t entirely sure of who Alice invited to the wedding and Alice never asked Bella for contact information but Bella knew somehow everyone invited would show up. As the day went on and Bella was being pampered she could hear everyone arriving. Some people arrived as early as 10 am. 

While Bella sat in a guest room waiting for Alice to finish her hair and makeup, Rosalie prepared champagne with drops of deer blood in it. 

“There’s no reason you shouldn’t be able to celebrate even though alcohol does not affect you,” Rosalie said. 

Bella drank the champagne in one gulp. It tasted like dry blood going down but the gesture was nice. 

In Bella’s long life, days felt like seconds. Today, seconds felt like days. 

“Bella, who’s walking you down the aisle?” Rosalie asked. 

_How didn’t Alice think about this before?! She had everything planned._

Bella didn’t have an answer for Rosalie, just a panicked look that she shared with Alice, too. 

“I’ve got it all figured out, Bella. It’s okay,” Alice said, calming down Bella and shooting a look at Rose. 

Five o’clock finally came and Bella was ready to see Edward and who was walking her down the aisle. As she rounded the corner, before exiting the house, she ran into a perfectly dressed Carlisle. 

“Are you ready?” he asked, holding his arm out for Bella to grab and she did. “I hope it is okay that Alice asked me to do this. Though you’re not mine to give away I am honored to be a part of this union between you two,” Carlisle said. 

“I couldn’t think of anything more perfect.”

Then they [started walking](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZftVCIRWkwA) down the aisle. Bella looked at the guests sitting on either side of the aisle. It was clear that Alice said to sit anywhere because the seating area was mixed with everyone. Bella saw Jacob and some people from his pack, and some vampires from the Denali coven.

After seeing all of her friends and family in the seats, she finally got a good look at Edward. _The most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. I love that I get to love him endlessly._

When the officiant said everything he had to say and it was time for Bella and Edward to kiss, time froze. They kissed and the crowd disappeared. It was just them from this moment until forever. 

Everyone gathered on the giant deck that was attached to the house for the reception.

First, dinner was served. Since most of the attendees were vampires, Alice only had her instincts, Mike, and Jacob to help her pick out entrees. Of course, Jacob wanted the fish and Mike disagreed, wanting the steak. Just to please everyone, Alice decided to pick both options for them.

“At least you both will remember this when it comes time for your weddings,” Alice told them. 

The next decision they needed to make was about cake and there was no disagreement there. They all decided on an Almond sponge with raspberry and lemon filling and white chocolate buttercream frosting. 

After eating everyone gathered around to watch Bella and Edward’s first dance. 

Alice had everything planned out perfectly. Every song was chosen with them in mind. It was like she was planning their wedding from the moment she knew that Bella was in Forks mixed with songs that everyone could dance to. If Alice hadn’t told Bella that she didn’t know every song created, Bella wouldn’t have believed her. 

The wait to be able to dance with Edward for the first time was worth it for the amount of emotion that surrounded Edward and Bella. The moment was better than homecoming and they could kiss this time because they weren’t hiding their feelings. 

[ The song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH7bjV0Q_44) filled the hidden speakers in the trees as Edward and Bella walked onto the dancefloor. The song was one that you had to listen to the lyrics to understand the full meaning, luckily it was a song both Edward and Bella had heard before. They painted the dancefloor with their dance and their love. Every twirl that they did was a knot tightening their bond. Alice couldn’t have picked a better song. 

After their dance, a few other songs played and it was time for speeches. Emmett was first and of course, he said something that no one completely understood and it was awkward. Everyone else who wanted to said theirs’ and [ Edward went](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIB-RshziJ4). His speech brought tears to everyone’s eyes who could produce them and a mouthed “I love you” from Bella. 

Then it was Bella’s turn to give a speech and she didn’t know how she was supposed to follow Edward’s up.

“I thought I had my life figured out before I found you, Edward. Then I met you and you brought something I didn’t know I was missing, love. After that, it felt like everything was lined up for us to be together forever. You don’t get to find the perfect person, but somehow I found you and you’re everything to me,” Bella said. 

Everyone who was crying from Edward’s speech had more tears for Bella and Edward returned the mouthed “I love you” back to Bella.

After the speeches, Bella and Edward shared another dance before roaming around the reception.

While Bella was talking to some of her new “relatives” someone tapped her on the shoulder bringing her attention to them. 

“I’m sorry to interrupt but I was wondering if I could have this dance with Bella,” Mike said. 

Bella nodded and excused herself from the conversation. 

Bella recognized [ the song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGF7PswOENQ) that played through the speakers as the song they shared a dance to at homecoming all those years ago. “Mike, did you ask Alice to play this song?” Bella asked.

“Of course I did,” Mike answered. 

As they danced Bella reminisced about the first time they did this. She was worried that he was going to fall in love with her. Now he’s one of her most trusted friends. As she looked at Mike she noticed the crinkles by his eyes that weren’t there five years ago and the formed lines around his mouth. He was aging and she knew she would have to leave him behind one day but for now, she danced to the song they shared once before. 

She hoped that he was getting everything out of life that he wanted. That he would eventually settle down with someone and fall in love the way she had. She hoped that she didn’t ruin his life. 

As the song ended she left the dance feeling satisfied that Mike was in a good place in his life. 

“Thank you, Mike,” Bella said. 

“You’re welcome,” Mike said and walked back over to Angela and her date, Eric and his date, Jessica. As he did Bella was reminded of moments they shared in high school.

“So we can ask you for dances now?” Emmett shouted to Bella from across the space being used as a dancefloor. 

“I suppose you can, what did you have in mind?” Bella asked, walking toward him. 

“Oh, I have the perfect song for us,” Emmet said and ran, at a semi-human speed, to find Alice. 

Bella didn’t even have to hesitate to know [the song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFrGuyw1V8s) that played out of the speakers next. As soon as it played she was laughing. Emmett rushed to the dance floor. 

“This song is perfect,” Bella said. 

“I know,” Emmett said. 

Between dance moves that they were making up on the spot, they were laughing. No one was on the dancefloor except for them because everyone was too amused watching them dance. 

“I guess since they’re dancing we should, too,” Bella heard Jacob say. 

“Uh, no,” Edward responded.

This interaction made Bella smile, but she never lost her concentration on dancing. Because Bella and Emmett were having so much fun, the song played twice and the second time everyone joined in. 

“Oh my gosh, Emmett that was the best,” Bella said, hugging him. 

“Bella, we need to start a dance team immediately,” Emmett said and Bella couldn’t tell if he was joking. 

“I don’t know why we don’t already have one,” Bella played along. 

“I’m so glad you’re my sister now.”

Everyone left the dance floor except Bella and Jacob. 

“My turn?” Jacob asked. 

“Absolutely,” Bella said. She had [the perfect song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkvTYrFIxNM) for this picked out already and told Alice about it. Bella looked for Alice so she would know to play the song. 

Bella would never be able to form the right words to explain to Jacob how much he meant to her but she hoped this moment would help a little bit. 

“I’m so glad you came, Jacob,” Bella said.

“Me too. I feel like it’s been forever since I’ve seen you.”

“It has been. We went on an overextended vacation and got caught up in traveling. I’m glad we’re back and we can see you now.”

Bella told Jacob about their extensive vacation and about all the places she thought he would love. They caught up and it was another moment Bella would be thankful for when it came to remembering her wedding.

After Bella and Jacob shared their moment, Bella wondered where Edward was. She hadn’t seen him in a while and she was missing her husband. Until [a big dance song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPlQpGeTbIE) came on and she got swept into dancing to it with Jasper. 

“Guess it’s my turn now,” Jasper said, shrugging one shoulder.

The song didn’t make a lot of sense to Bella, especially how Jasper knew it, but she had fun doing anything she wanted with it. They probably looked odd doing every dance move under the sun but the point was the fun they were having. 

“I might have to join your dance team with Emmett now,” Jasper said after the song ended.

“I don’t know about that one. You’re going to have to take it up with him,” Bella joked back and gave Jasper a hug, “Thanks for introducing me to your music taste.”

“We don’t all listen to classical music as Edward does,” Jasper said, pointing behind Bella where Edward was. 

“I don’t only listen to classical music,” Edward said from across the deck, knowing that they would be able to hear him. 

“Edward! Where have you been?” Bella said, rushing toward him. 

“I’ve been here, making my rounds,” Edward joked. 

Bella embraced him with a hug and a kiss. 

The rest of the night fades into the songs as Bella and Edward melt away into each other. They share their last dance for the night on the empty deck. As [ the song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiiyq2xrSI0) disappeared into the background so did the day, the night, and the rest of their lives. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!!!SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!
> 
> Okay, so first things first https://unsplash.com/@bellaswan/collections since I made Bella a sort of photographer these are some pictures I've gathered on Unsplash that she could've taken but all credit goes to the people who took them. These are pictures from their 3.5-year vacation. It took me quite a while to compile all of the albums together so please comment if you like it!!!
> 
> Secondly, music was a giant part of this epilogue and basically every wedding ever (Imagine a wedding without music) so of course, I compiled a playlist for it on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/playlist/096kH7VF9rfJoMfTmY47Ce?si=OePpXH79TxK2KNNnkw3-Xw you can also comment on that if you liked that, too. It took me about 14 hours to make it.
> 
> Lastly, let's get into the story!!!!! I didn't want to rewrite Edward's speech for the wedding because it was sort of already perfect for them. Also, I know I linked the original Bella walking down the aisle video but just picture Carlisle instead of Charlie I just wanted the visual. I knew going into the epilogue that Mike and Bella were going to have another moment. I originally didn't even want to write the wedding but when I thought of it everything just flowed out of me. The last thing I want to mention is that there are places in this epilogue where sexual relations are implied, you can make your own inferences but that was what I meant I just didn't want to write a sex scene. 
> 
> Thank you for reading this and sticking around for the whole thing. 
> 
> (I'll be thinking about Emmett and Bella dancing to Dancing Queen at the wedding forever)


End file.
